Education Committee
Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee
AN ACT CONCERNING AUTHORIZATION OF STATE GRANT COMMITMENTS FOR SCHOOL BUILDING PROJECTS AND CONCERNING CHANGES TO THE STATUTES CONCERNING SCHOOL BUILDING PROJECTS
SUMMARY:
This act authorizes $344. 5 million in grant commitments for 20 local school construction, vocational agriculture (vo-ag), and interdistrict magnet school projects. It also reauthorizes and changes grant commitments for three previously authorized projects with significant changes in cost and scope. Of the three reauthorizations, two are reauthorized at reduced, and one at increased, cost. The total net increase in grant commitments for the reauthorizations is $8. 82 million.
Furthermore, the act approves various exemptions, waivers, and changes for either new authorizations or changes to previous authorizations for an additional state cost of $141. 3 million. It also makes changes to the diversity school construction grant program.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage
§ 1 — NEW AUTHORIZATIONS
Table 1: New School Construction Projects Authorized
District |
School |
Project |
Estimated Cost |
Estimated Grant |
State Reimbursement |
Berlin |
Berlin High School |
Extension & alteration/roof replacement |
$69,950,000 |
$32,974,430 |
47. 14% |
Brooklyn |
Brooklyn Middle School |
Extension & alteration |
1,700,000 |
1,250,690 |
73. 57% |
Danbury |
Danbury High School |
Energy conservation |
4,073,767 |
2,196,983 |
53. 93% |
Eastford |
Eastford Elementary School |
Energy conservation |
150,000 |
90,000 |
60. 00% |
Guilford |
Guilford High School |
New school |
92,220,800 |
28,653,003 |
31. 07% |
Hartford |
West Middle School |
Extension & alteration/roof replacement |
54,600,000 |
43,680,000 |
80. 0% |
Hartford |
Hartford Magnet Middle School* |
Extension & alteration/ magnet school |
29,440,000 |
23,552,000 |
80. 0% |
Hartford |
Burns Academy for Latino Studies |
Alteration |
700,000 |
557,480 |
79. 64% |
Meriden |
Maloney High School |
Extension & alteration/roof replacement |
107,500,000 |
82,925,500 |
77. 14% |
Meriden |
Platt High School |
Extension & alteration/roof replacement |
111,800,000 |
86,242,520 |
77. 14% |
Middletown |
Middletown Vo-Ag Center |
Vo-ag equipment |
50,000 |
47,500 |
95. 00% |
Region 6 |
Wamogo Regional High School (Vo-Ag) |
Vo-ag equipment |
309,800 |
294,310 |
95. 00% |
Region 14 |
Nonnewaug High School (Vo-Ag) |
Vo-ag equipment/construction |
246,101 |
233,796 |
95. 00% |
Region 14 |
Nonnewaug High School (Vo-Ag) |
Vo-ag equipment |
246,508 |
234,183 |
95. 00% |
Southington |
Carl M. Small Regional Vo-Ag Center |
Vo-ag equipment |
259,753 |
246,765 |
95. 00% |
Stratford |
Stratford High School |
Extension & alteration/roof replacement |
56,115,586 |
28,057,793 |
50. 00% |
Vernon |
Rockville High Vo-Ag Center |
Vo-ag equipment |
154,095 |
146,390 |
95. 00% |
Waterbury |
Bucks Hill School |
Alteration |
500,000 |
394,650 |
78. 93% |
Waterbury |
Cross School |
Alteration |
450,000 |
355,185 |
78. 93% |
Waterbury |
Wallace Middle/Crosby High |
Extension & alteration |
15,758,000 |
12,381,061 |
78. 57% |
*See § 14 of notwithstanding provisions for more on this project. | |||||
§ 1 — REAUTHORIZED PROJECTS
Table 2 lists the projects proposed for reauthorization because of significant (more than 10%) changes in cost or scope.
Table 2: Reauthorization of Previously Authorized Projects
District |
School |
Project |
Previous Grant Authorization |
New Grant Authorization |
Change |
Griswold |
Griswold Middle School |
Extension & alteration/roof replacement |
$25,013,800 |
$22,584,018 |
($2,429,782) |
Milford |
Jonathan Law High School |
Extension & alteration/ energy conservation |
2,141,150 |
1,620,839 |
(520,311) |
Capitol Region Education Council (CREC) |
Medical professions & Teacher Preparation Magnet Academy |
New magnet school/site purchase |
49,509,654 |
61,281,840 |
11,772,186 |
SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION “NOTWITHSTANDINGS”
The act exempts certain school construction projects from various statutory and regulatory requirements to allow them to (1) qualify for state grants or (2) waive a repayment (i. e. , “clawback”) requirement due to the project failing to meet an existing requirement. These exemptions are referred to as “notwithstanding” provisions. Table 3 summarizes each exemption and any applicable conditions.
Table 3. Notwithstanding Provisions for Local School Projects
§ |
District |
Project |
Exemption, Waiver, or Other Change |
2 |
Griswold |
Griswold Elementary School |
Space specification waiver. |
3 |
Colchester |
William J Johnston Middle School |
Application deadline extension until November 30, 2012. |
4 |
Bethel |
Bethel High School |
Waives repayment of funds by allowing enrollment figure of 1,140. |
5 |
Meriden |
Francis T. Maloney High School & Orville H. Platt High School |
Changes extension and alteration projects to renovation projects: space specification waivers; provides full rather than one-half reimbursement for natatorium or auditorium. |
6 |
North Branford |
North Branford High School |
Permits bid prior to plan approval |
7 |
Windham |
Windham Magnet School |
Changes use of site acquisition grant for other construction purposes. |
8 |
West Hartford |
Aiken Elementary School |
Permits bid prior to plan approval |
9 |
West Hartford |
Bugbee Elementary School |
Permits bid prior to plan approval |
10 |
West Hartford |
Conard High School |
Provides reimbursement eligibility for $250,000 athletic field illumination |
11 |
West Hartford |
Hall High School |
Provides reimbursement eligibility for $250,000 athletic field illumination |
13 |
Stamford |
Rippowam Middle School |
Waives repayment of funds by allowing enrollment figure of 1,400. |
14 |
Hartford |
Hartford Magnet Middle School |
Sets reimbursement rate at 95% rather than 80%. |
15 |
Region 14 |
Woodbury Middle School |
Waives repayment of funds by allowing enrollment figure of 727 and a grade range of six to eight. |
16 |
New London |
New London High School |
Application deadline extension until November 1, 2012. |
17 |
Middletown |
Lawrence Elementary School |
Waives repayment of funds by allowing enrollment figure of 475. |
18 |
Middletown |
Wesley Elementary School |
Waives repayment of funds by allowing enrollment figure of 450. |
19 |
New London |
Magnet District |
Maintains per pupil magnet grant eligibility by waiving minimum student population requirement of students from outside magnet host town |
20 |
Guilford |
Guilford Public High School |
Eliminates clawback of up to $615,000 for building redirection for non-education purpose. |
21 |
Waterford |
Waterford High School |
Changes extension and alteration project to renovation project; permits bid prior to plan approval. |
22 |
Fairfield |
Warde High School |
Waives roof replacement requirements and permits bid prior to plan approval. |
23 |
Bridgeport |
Longfellow School |
Changes project description from extension and renovation to new construction provided the increase in the grant commitment is not more than $23. 2 million and construction begins by June 30, 2014. |
24 |
Bridgeport |
Columbus School |
Increases project cost eligibility up to $1. 5 million to meet removal cost of PCB contamination. |
25 |
New Haven |
Engineering and Science University Magnet School |
Maintains reimbursement rate at 95% rather than 80% as long as construction begins by June 30, 2014. |
26 |
Achievement First |
Achievement First Amistad High School |
Makes project eligible for state aid provided project cost is not above $35 million and application is submitted before June 30, 2013. Reimbursement rate is 68. 93% of eligible costs. |
27 |
CREC |
Various projects |
Increases eligible cost of various projects and changes project descriptions. |
28 |
CREC |
Various projects |
Makes cost of short-term financing eligible for state reimbursement. |
29 |
Common Ground |
Common Ground High School |
Makes project eligible for state aid provided project cost is not above $4 million and application is submitted before June 30, 2013. |
30 |
Hartford |
Weaver High School |
Allows project eligibility provided cost is not above $2. 1 million and grant application is submitted before June 30, 2013. |
§ 12 — DIVERSITY SCHOOL PROJECT GRANTS
By law, the Department of Construction Services commissioner, in consultation with the State Department of Education must provide special school construction grants for school districts that have one or more schools with minority enrollments that exceed the district-wide average percentage of minority enrollment by more than 25% for the same grades (i. e. , schools that have a disproportionately high minority population). The grants reimburse these districts for 80% of the reasonable capital costs for school renovation and construction projects, which for all districts except Hartford is higher than the standard reimbursement.
The law sets requirements for the grant including: (1) the diversity school must be open to all students living in the district for the purpose of correcting the existing minority enrollment disparity and (2) the school board must demonstrate that it has made a good faith effort to correct the disparity, as determined by the education commissioner.
The act repeals the requirements that the education commissioner (1) conduct a programmatic audit of each diversity school and (2) require the district to pay back over 20 years any reimbursement above the district's standard rate if the school has not made any significant progress to correct the school or schools' minority enrollment disparity. The act adds a requirement that the application for the grant must include a plan to correct the existing minority enrollment disparity.
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