RCW 28A.525.058 K-3 class size reduction construction grant pilot program. (Expires July 1, 2017.)

(1) The K-3 class size reduction construction grant pilot program must be administered by the office of the superintendent of public instruction within the provisions of this section. Grants must be calculated and awarded based on the following four steps:

(a) Step 1: A verified count of necessary added classrooms in a district applying for a grant must be completed by the district and verified by the Washington State University extension energy office. The count of necessary added classrooms must be calculated in accordance with the following requirements:

(i) An inventory of all classrooms in all elementary schools in the district applying for the grant must be completed.

(ii) For purposes of this section, elementary school is any district school facility containing students in kindergarten through fifth grade or sixth grade. All classrooms include any room in an elementary school in a permanent or portable structure that is in use as a classroom or that could be used as a classroom if one of the following conditions are met:

(A) A classroom in a permanent building was designed as a classroom at the time the school was constructed or was subsequently added as part of a modernization or renovation.

(B) A classroom in a portable building meets the building code requirements for use as a classroom without requiring repairs or renovations that exceed fifty thousand dollars.

The count of all district classrooms must also include all planned elementary school classrooms in projects approved at the "D6" stage or later of the school construction assistance program. This inventory of classrooms must be entered in the inventory and condition of school system maintained by the office of the superintendent of public instruction.

(iii) A count of available classrooms in each elementary school in a district must be completed. Available classrooms include all classrooms inventoried in (a)(i) of this subsection minus:

(A) Classrooms in elementary schools that are regularly used for students in grades seventh or higher;

(B) Classrooms in elementary schools that are regularly used for prekindergarten students participating in special education programs;

(C) Classrooms in elementary schools that are regularly used for prekindergarten students not participating in special education programs if such use started prior to July 14, 2015;

(D) Seventy-five percent of classrooms in elementary schools that are regularly used for kindergarten through sixth grade students participating in special education programs;

(E) Fifty percent of classrooms in elementary schools that are regularly used for students in gifted and talented education;

(F) Fifty percent of classrooms in elementary schools that are regularly used for laboratory space, music, or art if such regular use exceeds fifty percent of school hours in the average week.

(iv) A calculation of needed classrooms must be completed. The number of needed classrooms is calculated by dividing the number of students in each grade in the most recent final October head count by the average class size objectives for the 2017-18 school year enumerated in RCW 28A.150.260 in effect as of October 31, 2014. Students residing outside the school district who are enrolled in alternative learning experience courses under RCW 28A.232.010 must be excluded from the count of total pupils. In lieu of the exclusion in this subsection, a district may submit an alternative calculation for excluding students enrolled in alternative learning experience courses. The alternative calculation must show the student head count use of district classroom facilities on a regular basis for a reasonable duration by out-of-district alternative learning experience students subtracted by the head count of in-district alternative learning experience students not using district classroom facilities on a regular basis for a reasonable duration. The alternative calculation must be submitted in a form approved by the office of the superintendent of public instruction. The office of the superintendent of public instruction must develop rules to define "regular basis" and "reasonable duration." If the calculation of needed classrooms for fourth and fifth grade students using the average class size ratios in RCW 28A.150.260 is less than the actual number of classrooms regularly used for fourth and fifth grade students, the actual number of fourth and fifth grade classrooms may be used to calculate the total needed classrooms.

(v) A calculation of necessary added classrooms must be completed for each school district applying for a grant. Necessary added classrooms are calculated by subtracting the available school district classrooms from the school district needed classrooms.

(b) Step 2: A determination must be made whether the number of necessary added classrooms is sufficient to justify constructing a new school or modernizing a previously closed school, or whether the number of necessary added classrooms can be provided with the addition of modular classrooms or increasing the number of classrooms in a planned school approved at the "D6" stage of the school construction assistance program.

(i) If the number of necessary added classrooms is twelve or greater, the presumption is a new school is required. For this purpose a new school means a newly constructed school, an addition of twelve or more classrooms to an existing school, or modernization of a previously closed school. A school district may choose to locate any necessary added classrooms among existing school facilities.

(ii) If the number of necessary added classrooms is less than twelve, the presumption is the added classrooms can be provided with the addition of modular classrooms or by increasing the number of classrooms in a planned school approved at the "D6" stage of the school construction assistance program. A school district may choose to provide necessary added classrooms with modular classrooms or construct new classrooms or modernize existing school buildings to create additional classrooms.

(i) Grants for necessary added classrooms that can be provided with the addition of modular classrooms must not exceed two hundred ten thousand dollars multiplied by the number of necessary added classrooms multiplied by the state matching ratio defined in (c)(iii) of this subsection.

(ii) Grants for necessary added classrooms that must be provided with a new school or modernization of an existing school building must not exceed six hundred fifteen thousand eighty-three dollars multiplied by the number of necessary added classrooms multiplied by the state matching ratio defined in (c)(iii) of this subsection.

(iii) The state matching ratio for use in this section only is the computed state ratio defined in RCW 28A.525.166 plus twenty percent of the percent of district head count eligible and enrolled in the free and reduced school lunch program.

(iv) Grants may not exceed the total project cost for providing the necessary added classrooms multiplied by the state matching ratio defined in (c)(iii) of this subsection.

(v) The amounts in (c)(i) and (ii) of this subsection must be increased for the fiscal year of the grant award by the same percentage increase as the school construction assistance program construction cost allocation is increased from fiscal year 2014 as authorized in the omnibus capital appropriations act.

(d) Step 4: Grant funds must be awarded and disbursed in accordance with the following requirements:

(i) A determination that the school district is ready to begin the project or projects to provide the necessary added classrooms must be made. To be determined ready, a district must:

(A) Have had classrooms inventoried in (a)(i) of this subsection;

(B) Certify that the required local funds are authorized to complete the project;

(D) Demonstrate that additional classrooms will achieve progress towards the average class size objectives for the 2017-18 school year enumerated in RCW 28A.150.260 in effect as of October 31, 2014, and all-day kindergarten as funded pursuant to RCW 28A.150.315.

(ii) The office of financial management must approve allotments prior to issuing grant award letters. The office of the superintendent of public instruction must submit documentation to the office of financial management to justify the project grant award, including steps taken to verify counts and calculations, in requesting allotment approval.

(iii) Grant funds may be disbursed only after the required local match has been fully expended.

(2) If grant applications for the K-3 class size reduction construction grant pilot program exceed available funding, the office of the superintendent of public instruction must prioritize grant awards based on the following criteria in the following order of importance:

(a) Applicants with high necessary added classrooms to available classrooms ratio in kindergarten through third grades;

(b) Applicants with high student to teacher ratios in kindergarten through third grades;

(c) Applicants with high percentages of students who are eligible and enrolled in the free and reduced-price meals program; and

(d) Applicants that have not raised capital funds through levies or bonds in the prior ten-year period.

(3) The superintendent of public instruction must report annually on the grants awarded and school district applicants. The report must include (a) grant amounts and the status of all awarded grants by school district; (b) data documenting actual class size reductions and all-day kindergarten achieved in school districts that have received grants provided under this section; (c) a list of school districts that applied for grants during the current and previous fiscal years with estimates of necessary added classrooms; and (d) any other information relevant to the pilot program. Beginning in 2015, the report must be submitted to the office of financial management and the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1st.

(4) This section expires July 1, 2017.

[2015 3rd sp.s. c 41 § 201.]

NOTES:

Findings—Intent—2015 3rd sp.s. c 41: "(1) The legislature finds that local school districts design, build, own, and manage public school facilities. The Washington state Constitution provides two ways to fund construction of public school facilities. First, the state Constitution provides the means for school districts to finance school construction. Article VII, section 2 of the state Constitution authorizes school districts to collect capital levies to support the construction, remodeling, or modernization of school facilities. In addition, Article VIII, section 6 of the state Constitution authorizes school districts to incur debt up to eleven and one-half percent of the total assessed value of taxable property for school construction and Article VII, section 2 of the state Constitution authorizes school districts to pay for this debt by issuing general obligation bonds for these capital purposes. Second, Article IX, section 3 of the state Constitution establishes the common school construction fund and dedicates revenues derived from school and state trust lands and earnings of the permanent common school fund to funding common school construction. Beyond these constitutional means, the legislature provides further state assistance to school districts through the issuance of general obligation bonds, the proceeds of which the state appropriates to support the state school construction assistance grant program established in chapter 28A.525 RCW. This state grant program is not intended to replace the financing provisions established in the state Constitution, but rather to provide state assistance that supplements the constitutional financing provisions. The state grant program helps finance new school capacity to accommodate enrollment growth and to modernize and replace existing schools while respecting local decisions and control by locally elected school boards.

(2) The legislature also finds that some school districts may benefit from additional financial assistance to provide school facilities—beyond that which is provided through the school construction assistance grant program—for the purpose of constructing or acquiring additional classrooms to support state-funded all-day kindergarten and class size reduction in kindergarten through third grade.

(3) For the 2015-2017 biennium, the legislature intends to provide additional state financial assistance to help school districts in funding public school facilities necessary to support state-funded all-day kindergarten and class size reduction in kindergarten through third grade." [2015 3rd sp.s. c 41 § 101.]

Effective date—2015 3rd sp.s. c 41: "This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect immediately [July 14, 2015]." [2015 3rd sp.s. c 41 § 403.]