Amend the bill, as and if amended, Part IB, Section 1A, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION - EIA, beginning on page 321, by striking proviso 1A.82 and inserting:
/ 1A.82. (SDE-EIA: School Districts Capital Improvement Plan) The funds appropriated for the School Districts Capital Improvement Plan in Part IA, Section 1, VIII, J, School Districts Capital Improvements and by provisos 1.89, 1A.81, and 1A.85 shall be allocated by the Department of Education to school districts for the purpose of funding school facility upgrades, including public charter schools. 70% of the funds shall go to any school district that is a plaintiff in the Abbeville law suit or districts with a poverty index of eighty percent or higher, including public charter schools in those districts sponsored by that district or the SC Public Charter School District. The remaining balance shall go to the remaining school districts. For the purpose of this provision, "school facility" means only facilities necessary for instructional and related supporting purposes including, but not limited to, classrooms, libraries, media centers, laboratories, cafeterias, physical education spaces, and related interior and exterior facilities. Eligible school facility projects shall include: (a) health and safety upgrades; and (b) deferred maintenance needs as described in the district's capital improvement plan. For purposes of this provision, school facilities shall not include unimproved real property, centralized district administration facilities, or other facilities, including those normally identified with interscholastic sports activities.
The department shall develop and maintain an application process for school districts, including public charter schools, to request funding for qualified school projects and establish policies, procedures, and priorities for the making of grants pursuant to this provision. At a minimum, results of the facilities assessments and a districts own ability to raise revenues as determined by the index of taxpaying ability shall be utilized to establish priority of the eligible projects for grants. At least twice a year and upon receipt of applications pursuant to the application process adopted by the department, the department shall prioritize the eligible projects with the greatest need and shall submit a list of recommended grant awards to the State Board of Education. Grants shall be awarded upon an affirmative vote of the State Board.
The financial assistance provided to school districts pursuant to this provision must be used for the eligible school facility project. The department is responsible for establishing policies and procedures to ensure that funds are expended in a manner consistent with this provision.
Following the close of the fiscal year, the department shall submit an annual report of its School Districts Capital Improvement Plan activities for the preceding year to the Governor, the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, the Chairman of the Senate Education Committee, and the Chairman of the House Education and Public Works Committee. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend sections, totals and title to conform.