School Construction Assistance Program.  The School Construction Assistance Program (SCAP), administered by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, provides school districts with financial assistance to construct new schools and modernize existing facilities.  Through SCAP, the state contributes funding, as well as technical assistance, for facility planning, construction, and contracting.  State funding assistance is determined using a funding formula based on three main factors—eligible area, construction cost allocation, and the funding assistance percentage.

The eligible space for new construction is calculated by comparing the current district-wide capacity, in square feet, to the district’s projected enrollment growth and future space needs.

The construction cost allocation is the maximum cost per square foot of construction that the state will recognize—as of July 1, 2025 the construction cost allocation is $386.66 per square foot.

The state applies a funding assistance percentage, formally known as the match ratio, to equalize state funding assistance.  The percentage accounts for differences across school districts in wealth and the ability to generate revenue through property taxes.  Districts experiencing rapid growth in student enrollments may receive extra growth points.  The minimum percentage is 20 percent of recognized project costs, and can be as much as 100 percent of the recognized costs, depending on district wealth and growth.

Federal Impact Aid Program. Through the Impact Aid Program, Congress provides financial assistance to local school districts that include, within their boundaries, lands owned by the federal government. The program was designed to assist local school districts that have lost property tax revenue due to the presence of tax-exempt federal property, or that have experienced increased expenditures due to the enrollment of federally connected children such as those residing on military bases, tribal lands, or low-rent housing properties.

Impact aid payments are provided for the following:

• payments to school districts in which the federal government has acquired real property with an assessed valuation of at least 10 percent of all real property in the district;
• basic support payments to help local school districts that educate federally connected children;
• payments for children with disabilities to educate federally connected children who are eligible for services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act; and
• construction grants to local school districts that educate high percentages of federally connected children, to help pay for the construction and repair of school buildings.

When determining eligibility for state funding assistance under SCAP, school district instructional facilities located on military bases must be excluded from a district's inventory of available instructional space.

The amount of state funding assistance must be equal to the total approved project cost minus the amount of federal funding received for the construction of the project.