Bill Text: WV HB2123 | 2018 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Making the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind eligible to participate in any and all funding administered or distributed by the West Virginia School Building Authority
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-10 - To House Education [HB2123 Detail]
Download: West_Virginia-2018-HB2123-Introduced.html
WEST virginia Legislature
2017 regular session
By
[
to the Committee on Education then Finance.
A BILL to amend and
reenact §18-9D-2, §18-9D-3, §18-9D-4c and §18-9D-16 of the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new
section, designated §18-9D-22, all relating to making the West Virginia Schools
for the Deaf and Blind eligible to participate in any and all funding
administered or distributed by the West Virginia School Building Authority.
Be it enacted by the
Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18-9D-2, §18-9D-3,
§18-9D-4c and §18-9D-16 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be
amended and reenacted; and that said code be amended by adding thereto a new
section, designated §18-9D-22, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 9D. SCHOOL BUILDING AUTHORITY.
§18-9D-2. Definitions.
For the purposes of this
article, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:
(1) "Authority"
means the School Building Authority of West Virginia;
(2) "Bonds" means
bonds issued by the authority pursuant to this article;
(3) "Construction
project" means a project in the furtherance of a facilities plan with a
cost greater than $1 million for the new construction, expansion or major
renovation of facilities, buildings and structures for school purposes,
including:
(A) The acquisition of land
for current or future use in connection with the construction project;
(B) New or substantial
upgrading of existing equipment, machinery and furnishings;
(C) Installation of utilities
and other similar items related to making the construction project operational.
(D) Construction project does
not include such items as books, computers or equipment used for instructional
purposes; fuel; supplies; routine utility services fees; routine maintenance
costs; ordinary course of business improvements; other items which are
customarily considered to result in a current or ordinary course of business
operating charge or a major improvement project;
(4) "Cost of
project" means the cost of construction, expansion, renovation, repair and
safety upgrading of facilities, buildings and structures for school purposes;
the cost of land, equipment, machinery, furnishings, installation of utilities
and other similar items related to making the project operational; and the cost
of financing, interest during construction, professional service fees and all
other charges or expenses necessary, appurtenant or incidental to the
foregoing, including the cost of administration of this article;
(5) "County board"
or "county" means a county board of education as provided in article
five of this chapter and includes the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and
the Blind as provided in article seventeen of this chapter when acting with the
approval of the West Virginia Board of Education to submit, request and receive
an award of funds or services for projects under the provisions of this
article.
(5) (6) "Facilities plan" means the ten-year
countywide comprehensive educational facilities plan established by a county
board in accordance with guidelines adopted by the authority to meet the goals
and objectives of this article, or a facilities plan established by the
administration of the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind that:
(A) Addresses the existing
school facilities and facility needs of the county, or the Schools for the
Deaf and Blind, to provide a thorough and efficient education in accordance
with the provisions of this code and policies of the state board;
(B) Best serves the needs of
individual students, the general school population and the communities served by
the facilities, including, but not limited to, providing for a facility
infrastructure that avoids excessive school bus transportation times for
students consistent with sound educational policy and within the budgetary
constraints for staffing and operating the schools of the county;
(C) Includes the school major
improvement plan;
(D) Includes the county
board’s school access safety plan required by section three, article nine-f of
this chapter;
(E) Is updated annually to
reflect projects completed, current enrollment projections and new or
continuing needs; and
(F) Is approved by the state
board and the authority prior to the distribution of state funds pursuant to
this article to any county board or other entity applying for funds;
(6) (7) "Project" means a construction project
or a major improvement project;
(7) (8) "Region" means the area encompassed
within and serviced by a regional educational service agency established
pursuant to section twenty-six, article two of this chapter;
(8) (9) “Revenue" or "revenues" means
moneys:
(A) Deposited in the School
Building Capital Improvements Fund pursuant to section ten, article nine-a of
this chapter;
(B) Deposited in the School
Construction Fund pursuant to section thirty, article fifteen, chapter eleven
of this code and section eighteen, article twenty-two, chapter twenty-nine of
this code;
(C) Deposited in the School
Building Debt Service Fund pursuant to section eighteen, article twenty-two,
chapter twenty-nine of this code;
(D) Deposited in the School
Major Improvement Fund pursuant to section thirty, article fifteen, chapter
eleven of this code;
(E) Received, directly or
indirectly, from any source for use in any project completed pursuant to this
article;
(F) Received by the authority
for the purposes of this article; and
(G) Deposited in the Excess
Lottery School Building Debt Services Fund pursuant to section eighteen-a,
article twenty-two, chapter twenty-nine of this code;.
(9) (10) "School major improvement plan" means
a ten-year school maintenance plan that:
(A) Is prepared by a county
board in accordance with the guidelines established by the authority and
incorporated in its Countywide Comprehensive Educational Facilities Plan, or is
prepared by the state board or the administrative council of an area vocational
educational center in accordance with the guidelines if the entities seek
funding from the authority for a major improvement project, or is prepared
by the administration of the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind;
(B) Addresses the regularly
scheduled maintenance for all school facilities of the county or under the
jurisdiction of the entity seeking funding;
(C) Includes a projected
repair and replacement schedule for all school facilities of the county or of the
entity seeking funding;
(D) Addresses the major
improvement needs of each school within the county or under the jurisdiction of
the entity seeking funding; and
(E) Is required prior to the
distribution of state funds for a major improvement project pursuant to this
article to the county board, state board or administrative council; and
(10) (11) "School major improvement project"
means a project with a cost greater than $50 thousand and less than $1 million
for the renovation, expansion, repair and safety upgrading of existing school
facilities, buildings and structures, including the substantial repair or
upgrading of equipment, machinery, building systems, utilities and other
similar items related to the renovation, repair or upgrading in the furtherance
of a school major improvement plan. A
major improvement project does not include such items as books, computers or
equipment used for instructional purposes; fuel; supplies; routine utility
services fees; routine maintenance costs; ordinary course of business
improvements; or other items which are customarily considered to result in a
current or ordinary course of business operating charge.;
(12) "Schools for the
Deaf and Blind" or "West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and
Blind" means the Schools for the Deaf and Blind established or continued
under article seventeen of this chapter.
§18-9D-3. Powers of authority.
The School Building Authority
has the power:
(1) To sue and be sued, plead
and be impleaded;
(2) To have a seal and alter
the same at pleasure;
(3) To contract to acquire
and to acquire, in the name of the authority, by purchase, lease-purchase not
to exceed a term of twenty-five years, or otherwise, real property or rights or
easements necessary or convenient for its corporate purposes and to exercise
the power of eminent domain to accomplish those purposes;
(4) To acquire, hold and
dispose of real and personal property for its corporate purposes;
(5) To make bylaws for the
management and rule of its affairs;
(6) To appoint, contract with
and employ attorneys, bond counsel, accountants, construction and financial
experts, underwriters, financial advisers, trustees, managers, officers and
such other employees and agents as may be necessary in the judgment of the
authority and to fix their compensation:
Provided, That contracts entered into by the School Building
Authority in connection with the issuance of bonds under this article to
provide professional and technical services, including, without limitation,
accounting, actuarial, underwriting, consulting, trustee, bond counsel, legal
services and contracts relating to the purchase or sale of bonds are subject to
the provisions of article three, chapter five-a of this code: Provided,
however, That notwithstanding any other provisions of this code, any
authority of the Attorney General of this state relating to the review of
contracts and other documents to effectuate the issuance of bonds under this
article shall be exclusively limited to the form of the contract and
document: Provided further, That
the Attorney General of this state shall complete all reviews of contracts and
documents relating to the issuance of bonds under this article within ten
calendar days of receipt of the contract and document for review;
(7) To make contracts and to
execute all instruments necessary or convenient to effectuate the intent of and
to exercise the powers granted to it by this article;
(8) To renegotiate all
contracts entered into by it whenever, due to a change in situation, it appears
to the authority that its interests will be best served;
(9) To acquire by purchase,
eminent domain or otherwise all real property or interests in the property
necessary or convenient to accomplish the purposes of this article;
(10) To require proper
maintenance and insurance of any project authorized under this section,
including flood insurance for any facility within the one hundred year flood
plain, at which authority funds are expended;
(11) To charge rent for the
use of all or any part of a project or buildings at any time financed,
constructed, acquired or improved, in whole or in part, with the revenues of
the authority;
(12) To assist the West
Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind or any county board of education that
chooses to acquire land, buildings and capital improvements to existing school
buildings and property for use as public school facilities, by lease from a
private or public lessor for a term not to exceed twenty-five years with an
option to purchase pursuant to an investment contract with the lessor on such
terms and conditions as may be determined to be in the best interests of the
authority, the State Board of Education and, if applicable, the county
board of education, consistent with the purposes of this article, by
transferring funds to the State Board of Education as provided in subsection
(d), section fifteen of this article for the use of the county board of
education;
(13) To accept and expend any
gift, grant, contribution, bequest or endowment of money and equipment to, or
for the benefit of, the authority or any project under this article, from the
State of West Virginia or any other source for any or all of the purposes
specified in this article or for any one or more of such purposes as may be
specified in connection with the gift, grant, contribution, bequest or
endowment;
(14) To enter on any lands
and premises for the purpose of making surveys, soundings and examinations;
(15) To contract for
architectural, engineering or other professional services considered necessary
or economical by the authority to provide consultative or other services to the
authority or to any regional educational service agency, the West Virginia
Schools for the Deaf and Blind or any
county board requesting professional services offered by the authority, to
evaluate any facilities plan or any project encompassed in the plan, to inspect
existing facilities or any project that has received or may receive funding
from the authority or to perform any other service considered by the authority
to be necessary or economical.
Assistance to the region, school or district may include the
development of preapproved systems, plans, designs, models or documents; advice
or oversight on any plan or project; or any other service that may be
efficiently provided by the authority to regional educational service
agencies, the state board, or county boards by the authority
or the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind;
(16) To provide funds on an
emergency basis to repair or replace property damaged by fire, flood, wind,
storm, earthquake or other natural occurrence, the funds to be made available
in accordance with guidelines of the School Building Authority;
(17) To transfer moneys to
custodial accounts maintained by the School Building Authority with a state
financial institution from the school construction fund and the school
improvement fund created in the State Treasury pursuant to the provisions of
section six of this article, as necessary to the performance of any contracts
executed by the School Building Authority in accordance with the provisions of
this article;
(18) To enter into agreements
with county boards and persons, firms or corporations to facilitate the
development of county board projects and county board facilities
plans. The county board participating in
an agreement shall pay at least twenty-five percent of the cost of the
agreement. Nothing in this section shall
be construed to supersede, limit or impair supersedes, limits or impairs
the authority of county boards to develop and prepare their projects or plans;
(19) To encourage any project
or part thereof to provide opportunities for students to participate in
supervised, unpaid work-based learning experiences related to the student’s
program of study approved by the county board or the administration of the
West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind. The work-based learning experience must
shall be conducted in accordance with a formal training plan approved by
the instructor, the employer and the student. and which sets The
experience shall set forth at a minimum the specific skills to be learned,
the required documentation of work-based learning experiences, the conditions
of the placement, including duration and safety provisions, and provisions for
supervision and liability insurance coverage as applicable. Projects involving the new construction and
renovation of vocational-technical and adult education facilities should
provide opportunities for students to participate in supervised work-based learning
experiences, to the extent practical, which meet the requirements of this
subdivision. Nothing in this subdivision
may be construed to affect registered youth apprenticeship programs or the
provisions governing those programs; and
(20) To do all things
necessary or convenient to carry out the powers given in this article.
§18-9D-4c. School Building Authority authorized to
temporarily finance projects through the issuance of loans, notes or other
evidences of indebtedness.
The School
Building Authority may by resolution, in accordance with the provisions of this
article, temporarily finance the cost of projects and other expenditures
permitted under this article for public schools in this state,
including, but not limited to, comprehensive high schools, and comprehensive
middle schools as defined in this article, in this state through the
issuance of and the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind. The financing may be issued through
loans, notes or other evidences of indebtedness, Provided, That the outstanding
principal amount of loans, notes or other evidences of indebtedness
outstanding at any one time shall which may not exceed $16 million at
any one time. Provided, however, That The principal
of, interest and premium if any on, and fees associated with any such
temporary financing shall be payable solely from the proceeds of bonds or
the sources from which the principal of, interest and premium, if any,
on bonds is any bonds are payable under this article. or from the
proceeds of bonds
§18-9D-16. Authority to establish guidelines and
procedures for facilities and major improvement plans; guidelines for
modifications and updates, etc.; guidelines for project evaluation; submission
of certified list of projects to be funded; department on-site inspection of
facilities; enforcement of required changes or additions to project plans.
(a) The authority shall
establish guidelines and procedures to promote the intent and purposes of this
article and assure the prudent and resourceful expenditure of state funds for
projects under this article including, but not limited to, the following:
(1) Guidelines and procedures
for the facilities plans, school major improvement plans and projects submitted
in the furtherance of the plans that address, but are not limited to, the
following:
(A) All of the elements of
the respective plans as defined in section two of this article;
(B) The procedures for a
county or the administration of the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and
Blind to submit a preliminary plan, a plan outline or a proposal for a plan
to the authority prior to the submission of the facilities plan. The preliminary plan, plan outline or
proposal for a plan shall be the basis for a consultation meeting between representatives
of the county or the administration of the West Virginia Schools for the
Deaf and Blind and members of the authority, including at least one citizen
member. which The meeting shall be held promptly following
submission of the preliminary plan, plan outline or proposal for a plan to
assure understanding of the general goals of this article and the objective
criteria by which projects will be evaluated, to discuss ways the plan may be
structured to meet those goals, and to assure efficiency and productivity in
the project approval process;
(C) The manner, time line and
process for the submission of each plan and annual plan updates to the
authority;
(D) The requirements for
public hearings, comments or other means of providing broad-based input on
plans and projects under this article within a reasonable time period as the
authority may consider appropriate. The
submission of each plan must be accompanied by a synopsis of all comments
received and a formal comment by the county board, the state board or the
administrative council of an area vocational educational center submitting the
plan;
(E) Any project
specifications and maintenance specifications considered appropriate by the
authority including, but not limited to, such matters as energy efficiency,
preferred siting, construction materials, maintenance plan and any other matter
related to how the project is to proceed;
(F) A prioritization by the
county board, the state board or the administrative council submitting the plan
of each project contained in the plan. In
prioritizing the projects, the county board, the state board or the
administrative council submitting the plan shall make determinations The
prioritization shall be determined in accordance with the objective
criteria formulated by the School Building Authority in accordance with this
section. The priority list is one of the
criteria that shall be considered by the authority in deciding how the
available funds should be expended;
(G) The objective means to be
set forth in the plan and used in evaluating implementation of the overall plan
and each project included in the plan.
The evaluation must shall measure how the plan addresses
the goals of this article and any guidelines adopted under this article, and
how each project is in furtherance of the facilities plan and school major
improvement plan, as applicable, as well as the importance of the
project to the overall success of the facilities plan or school major
improvement plan, and the overall goals of the authority; and
(H) Any other matters
considered by the authority to be important reflections of how a construction
project or a major improvement project or projects will further the
overall goals of this article.
(2) Guidelines and procedures
which may be adopted by the authority for requiring that a county board modify,
update, supplement or otherwise submit changes or additions to an approved
facilities plan or for requiring that a county board, the state board or the
administrative council of an area vocational educational center modify, update,
supplement or otherwise submit changes or additions to an approved school major
improvement plan. The authority shall
provide reasonable notification and sufficient time for the change or addition
as delineated in its guidelines. developed by the authority The guidelines shall require an update of the
estimated duration of school bus transportation times for students associated
with any construction project under consideration by the authority that
includes the closure, consolidation or construction of a school or schools.
(3) Guidelines and procedures
for evaluating project proposals that are submitted to the authority that
address, but are not limited to, the following:
(A) Any project funded by the
authority must shall be in furtherance of the facilities plan or
school major improvement plan and in compliance with the guidelines established
by the authority;
(B) If a project is to benefit
more than one county in the region, the facilities plan must shall
state the manner in which the cost and funding of the project will be
apportioned among the counties;
(C) If a county board
proposes to finance a construction project through a lease with an option to
purchase pursuant to an investment contract as described in subsection (f),
section fifteen of this article, the specifications for the project must
include the term of the lease, the amount of each lease payment, including the
payment due upon exercise of the option to purchase, and the terms and
conditions of the proposed investment contract; and
(D) The objective criteria
for the evaluation of projects which shall include, but are is
not limited to, the following:
(i) How the current facilities
do not meet and how the plan and any project under the plan meets meet
the following:
(I) Student health and safety
including, but not limited to, critical health and safety needs;
(II) Economies of scale,
including compatibility with similar schools that have achieved the most
economical organization, facility use and pupil-teacher ratios;
(III) Reasonable travel time
and practical means of addressing other demographic considerations. The authority may not approve a project after
July 1, 2008 that includes a school closure, consolidation or new
construction for which a new bus route will be created for the
transportation of students in any of the grade levels prekindergarten through
grade five transporting any prekindergarten through fifth grade students
to and from any school included in the project, which new bus if the
route exceeds by more than fifteen minutes the recommended duration of the one-way
school bus transportation duration time for elementary students adopted
by the state board as provided in pursuant to section five-d,
article two-e of this chapter, unless the county has received the written
permission of the state board to create the route in accordance with said
section five-d;
(IV) Multicounty and regional
planning to achieve the most effective and efficient instructional delivery
system;
(V) Curriculum improvement
and diversification, including the use of instructional technology, distance
learning and access to advanced courses in science, mathematics, language arts
and social studies;
(VI) Innovations in
education;
(VII) Adequate space for
projected student enrollments;
(VIII) The history of efforts taken by the
county board to propose or adopt local school bond issues or special levies to
the extent Constitutionally permissible; and
(IX) Regularly scheduled preventive maintenance;
and
(ii) How the project will
assure the prudent and resourceful expenditure of state funds and achieve the
purposes of this article for constructing, expanding, renovating or otherwise
improving and maintaining school facilities for a thorough and efficient
education.
(4) Guidelines and procedures
for evaluating projects for funding that address, but are not limited to, the
following:
(A) Requiring each county
board’s facilities plan and school major improvement plan to prioritize all the
construction projects or major improvement projects, respectively, within the
county. A school major improvement plan
submitted by the state board or the administrative council of an area
vocational educational center shall prioritize all the school improvement
projects contained in the plan. The
priority list shall be one of the criteria to be considered by the authority in
determining how available funds shall be expended. In prioritizing the projects, the county board,
the state board or the administrative council submitting a plan shall make
determinations in accordance with the objective criteria formulated by the
School Building Authority;
(B) The return to each county
submitting a project proposal an explanation of the evaluative factors
underlying the decision of the authority to fund or not to fund the project;
and
(C) The allocation and
expenditure of funds in accordance with this article, subject to the
availability of funds.
(b) Prior to final action on approving
projects for funding under this article, the authority shall submit a certified
list of the projects to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance.
(c) The State Department of
Education shall conduct on-site inspections, at least annually, of all
facilities which have been funded wholly or in part by moneys from the
authority or state board to ensure compliance with the county board's
facilities plan and school major improvement plan as related to the facilities;
to preserve the physical integrity of the facilities to the extent possible;
and to otherwise extend the useful life of the facilities. Provided,
That The state board shall submit reports regarding its on-site the
inspections of facilities to the authority within thirty days of
completion. of the on-site inspections:
Provided, however, That The state board shall promulgate
rules regarding the on-site inspections and matters relating thereto, in
consultation with the authority, as soon as practical and shall submit
proposed rules for legislative review. no later than December 1, 1994
(d) Based on its on-site
inspection or notification by the authority to the state board that the changes
or additions to a county's board county board’s facilities plan
or school major improvement plan required by the authority have not been
implemented within the time period prescribed by the authority, the state board
shall restrict the use of the necessary funds or otherwise allocate funds from
moneys appropriated by the Legislature for those purposes set forth in section
nine, article nine-a of this chapter.
§18-9D-22. Eligibility of the West Virginia Schools for
the Deaf and Blind to participate in all
types of funding administered or distributed by the authority.
(a) The Legislature finds
that:
(1) The Legislature's Constitutional
obligation to provide a thorough and efficient public education for the
children of West Virginia includes providing a thorough and efficient education
for the children of West Virginia who are deaf and blind;
(2) The Legislature has
endeavored to fulfill this obligation with the creation, maintenance and
operation of the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind, established and
continued under article seventeen of this chapter;
(3) The West Virginia Schools
for the Deaf and Blind have for generations provided educational services to
children from each of West Virginia's fifty-five counties;
(4) The facilities of the
West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind are in need of substantial
improvements;
(5) The West Virginia Schools
for the Deaf and Blind have no local levy which supports their operations, and
depend completely upon the appropriations from the state;
(6) The West Virginia Schools
for the Deaf and Blind have no borrowing authority nor revenue stream that can
serve as a source of servicing debt;
(7) Questions have arisen as
to whether or not it is permissible for the School Building Authority to
distribute to the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind financial
assistance for the construction and improvement of their facilities; and
(8) The West Virginia Schools
for the Deaf and Blind should have access to and be eligible to receive all
types of funding provided to county boards by the authority.
(b) Notwithstanding any
provision of this code to the contrary:
(1) The West Virginia Schools
for the Deaf and Blind are eligible to participate in all funding distributed
by the authority; and
(2) The authority may
distribute to the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind funds as it
determines to be appropriate.
(c) The authority may not require
the contribution of local funds for a project of the West Virginia Schools for
the Deaf and Blind, nor penalize the consideration or priority ranking of a
project of the schools for lack of local project funds. The state board may apply for funds for
education programs under its jurisdiction for projects at the West Virginia
Schools for the Deaf and Blind.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is
to make the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind eligible to
participate in any and all funding administered or distributed by the West
Virginia School Building Authority.
Strike-throughs indicate language
that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring
indicates new language that would be added.