AN ACT Relating to school buildings; amending RCW 28A.48.010 and 28A.47.802; adding a chapter to Title 28A RCW; making an appropriation; and declaring an emergency.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The emergency school building fund is established in the custody of the state treasurer. Moneys appropriated for the purposes of this chapter, moneys received as repayment of loans made pursuant to this chapter, and gifts or grants made for the purposes of this chapter shall be deposited in the emergency school building fund, including gifts or grants of moneys which each district is hereby authorized to make to the fund. Disbursements from the fund shall be on authorization of the superintendent of public instruction or the superintendent's designee. The fund is subject to the allotment procedure provided under chapter 43.88 RCW, but no appropriation is required for disbursements. The superintendent may expend funds from the emergency school building fund when, in the judgment of the superintendent, the funds are necessary to meet a school housing emergency.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. For purposes of this chapter, "school housing emergency" means the occurrence of an unexpected event that renders all or a portion of a school building unoccupiable and necessitates the acquisition of portable buildings to house displaced students and staff.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. The superintendent shall have the authority to:

(1) Make loans to school districts from the emergency school building fund for the purposes of acquiring, transporting, and making operational portable buildings required to meet a school housing emergency; and

(2) Adopt rules in accordance with chapter 34.05 RCW to implement this chapter, including rules that establish the particular school housing emergencies for which a loan may be made.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. Loans made to a school district for a school housing emergency under this chapter shall be:

(1) Interest-free; and

(2) Repaid in full by the school district on or before the close of the fifth school year following the school year during which the district received the loan, unless the period of repayment is extended by the superintendent for good cause.

Sec. 5. Section 15, chapter 15, Laws of 1970 ex. sess. as last amended by section 1, chapter 136, Laws of 1982 and RCW 28A.48.010 are each amended to read as follows:

On or before the last business day of September 1969 and each month thereafter, the superintendent of public instruction shall apportion from the state general fund to the several educational service districts of the state the proportional share of the total annual amount due and apportionable to such educational service districts for the school districts thereof as follows:

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The annual amount due and apportionable shall be the amount apportionable for all apportionment credits estimated to accrue to the schools during the apportionment year beginning September first and continuing through August thirty-first. Appropriations made for school districts for each year of a biennium shall be apportioned according to the schedule set forth in this section for the fiscal year starting September 1st of the then calendar year and ending August 31st of the next calendar year. The apportionment from the state general fund for each month shall be an amount which will equal the amount due and apportionable to the several educational service districts during such month: PROVIDED, That any school district may petition the superintendent of public instruction for an emergency advance of funds which may become apportionable to it but not to exceed ten percent of the total amount to become due and apportionable during the school districts apportionment year. The superintendent of public instruction shall determine if the emergency warrants such advance and if the funds are available therefor. If he determines in the affirmative, he may approve such advance and, at the same time, add such an amount to the apportionment for the educational service district in which the school district is located: PROVIDED, That the emergency advance of funds and the interest earned by school districts on the investment of temporary cash surpluses resulting from obtaining such advance of state funds shall be deducted by the superintendent of public instruction from the remaining amount apportionable to said districts during that apportionment year in which the funds are advanced.

Notwithstanding the duty to apportion moneys otherwise set forth in this section, the superintendent of public instruction may withhold all or a portion of the annual amounts due and apportionable to a school district until the district repays the delinquent amounts due on a school housing emergency loan made under section 3 of this act. However, no withholding shall occur unless the superintendent of public instruction has first determined that the withholding will not substantially impair the district's financial ability to provide the basic education program offerings required by law.

Sec. 6. Section 3, chapter 244, Laws of 1969 ex. sess. as amended by section 2, chapter 56, Laws of 1974 ex. sess. and RCW 28A.47.802 are each amended to read as follows:

In allotting the state funds provided by RCW 28A.47.800 through 28A.47.811, and in accordance with student enrollment as computed for the purposes of RCW 28A.41.140, the state board of education shall:

(1) Prescribe rules and regulations not inconsistent with RCW 28A.47.800 through 28A.47.811 governing the administration, control, terms, conditions, and disbursement of allotments to school districts to assist them in providing school plant facilities;

(2) Approve, whenever the board deems such action advisable, allotments to districts that apply for state assistance;

(3) Authorize the payment of approved allotments by warrant of the state treasurer; ((~~and~~))

(4) In the event that the amount of state assistance applied for pursuant to the provisions hereof exceeds the funds available for such assistance during any biennium, make allotments on the basis of the urgency of need for school facilities in the districts that apply for assistance or prorate allotments among such districts in conformity with procedures and regulations applicable thereto which shall be established by the board; and

(5) From time to time allot from the emergency school building fund established under section 1 of this act amounts not to exceed one million dollars per biennium as are necessary to fund the loans approved by the superintendent of public instruction to meet school housing emergencies.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. The sum of one million dollars or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1991, from the general fund to the superintendent of public instruction for the emergency school building fund.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. Sections 1 through 4 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 28A RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. 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 shall take effect immediately.