CHAPTER 289
HB 1446 – FINAL VERSION
06Feb2008… 0232h
04Jun2008… 1978cofc
2008 SESSION
04/09
HOUSE BILL 1446
AN ACT relative to changes to the school building aid statutes and to the schoolhouses statutes.
SPONSORS: Rep. Weyler, Rock 8; Rep. Cloutier, Sull 4; Rep. M. Smith, Straf 7; Rep. Stepanek, Hills 6; Sen. Gallus, Dist 1; Sen. Odell, Dist 8
This bill:
I. Makes changes to the process for proration of funds for school building aid grants.
II. Transfers authority over questions on the location of school buildings from the county commissioners to the state board of education.
III. Requires the school building authority to work with the state board of education on matters concerning school facilities.
IV. Is a request of the department of education.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
06Feb2008… 0232h
04Jun2008… 1978cofc
08-2242
04/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Eight
AN ACT relative to changes to the school building aid statutes and to the schoolhouses statutes.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
289:1 New Paragraph; School Building Authority. Amend RSA 195-C:1 by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:
IV.(a) The authority shall advise the state board of education by investigating matters concerning school facilities referred to them by the state board of education. Such matters shall include, but shall not be limited to, standards for school building construction pursuant to RSA 21-N:9, II(c), safety standards related to school buildings, financing of school construction projects, award of high performance school construction grants under RSA 198:15-b, I-b, and any other specific concerns about particular school buildings that have been brought to the attention of the state board of education.
(b) The authority shall seek the assistance and expertise of state and local agencies and private entities as may be necessary.
289:2 School Building Authority. Amend RSA 195-C:1, I to read as follows:
I. There shall be a school building authority [(], referred to in this chapter as the authority[)], of 5 members consisting of the state treasurer, the commissioner of education and 3 other members appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the council, for terms of 3 years and until their successors are appointed and qualify. The governor shall designate one of said members as chairman. In case of vacancy among the appointive members of the authority, the governor, with the advice and consent of the council, shall fill the same for the unexpired term. The appointive members of the authority shall receive as compensation for their services, while actually engaged in the business of the authority, the sum of $8 per day plus their necessary [travel and] subsistence expenses. The appointive members of the authority shall be paid mileage at the state employees rate, plus necessary travel expenses, only when performing activities at the request of the state board of education.
289:3 School Building Aid; Time of Computation of Grant. Amend RSA 198:15-d to read as follows:
198:15-d Time of Computation of Grant. As of January 1 in each year, the department of education shall cause to be computed the amount of the annual grants for school building aid to be paid to eligible school districts in the succeeding fiscal year. The computation shall be based upon the total of [approved] eligible costs of construction of school buildings approved by the legislative body of the school district and the department of education for which loans are outstanding in each school district for the fiscal year in which the computations are made.
289:4 School Building Aid; Proration and Unexpended Funds. Amend RSA 198:15-e to read as follows:
198:15-e Proration and Unexpended Funds. If in any year, the amount appropriated for distribution as school building grants in accordance with RSA 198:15-b is insufficient therefor, grants for eligible construction work approved by the legislative body of the school district since the approval of the most recent state biennial budget shall be deferred and included in a request for a future appropriation, or partial grants may be made to the extent of the available appropriation. Any partial grant made shall be prorated proportionally among all districts with eligible construction work approved since the approval of the most recent biennial budget. The department of education shall include any unpaid grant amounts in the next biennial budget or request a supplemental appropriation. If the amount appropriated is insufficient after deducting all grants approved since the approval of the most recent biennial budget, the appropriation shall be prorated proportionally among the districts entitled to a grant. Any amounts not distributed in the first year of any biennium may be distributed in the second year if required to distribute the maximum amount permissible under RSA 198:15-a.
289:5 Schoolhouses; Location and Construction by District. Amend RSA 199:1 to read as follows:
199:1 Location and Construction by District. The district may decide upon the location of its schoolhouses by vote or by a committee appointed for the purpose, provided, however, that all plans, specifications, and the selection of site for any new school buildings for any school district within the state shall be approved by the school board of the district in which it is proposed to construct such a building. [Before approving such buildings and locations the school board shall consult the state board of education who may make recommendations to the school board as to any changes it deems necessary.] The provisions of this section shall apply to all new construction of public school buildings, including those constructed by grant or loans of funds from state, the federal government, or other sources. [The state board of education shall recommend the postponement of the construction of new school buildings and facilities in cases in which it finds that price levels and costs of construction when compared with the relative needs of the school district, or other expedient reasons, make it more advantageous for the school district to postpone such construction to a later date, which recommendation shall be advisory in nature only.] For the purposes of this chapter, in addition to their usual meanings, the words “schoolhouse” and “school building” also mean educational administration building, including school administrative unit facilities.
289:6 Schoolhouses; Relocation Procedure Amended. Amend RSA 199:9 to read as follows:
199:9 Relocation by [County Commissioners] State Board of Education. If 10 percent or more of the voters of a school district are aggrieved by the location of a schoolhouse by the district or its committee, or by the school board, they may, within 10 days after the making of the location, apply by petition to the [county commissioners] state board of education, who shall hear the parties interested and determine the location.
289:7 Schoolhouses; Notice of Hearing Upon Question of Location. Amend RSA 199:10 to read as follows:
199:10 Notice of Hearing Upon Question of Location. The chairman of the [county commissioners] state board of education shall appoint a time and place within the district for a hearing upon every such petition, and shall give notice thereof by causing attested copies of the petition and order of notice to be posted at 2 or more public places within the district and to be given in hand to, or left at the abode of, the clerk of the district and of one of the school board, 14 days before the day of hearing.
289:8 Schoolhouses; Hearing. Amend RSA 199:12 to read as follows:
199:12 Hearing. The hearing shall be closed within 60 days. The [commissioners] state board of education shall hear all parties interested who desire to be heard, and shall make [their] a decision in writing and file it with the clerk of the district.
289:9 Repeal. The following are repealed:
I. RSA 199:11, relative to vacancies in board of commissioners.
II. RSA 199:13, relative to fees of commissioners.
III. RSA 199:22, relative to other uses.
IV. RSA 199:23, relative to locking devices.
V. RSA 199:24, relative to exits.
VI. RSA 199:25, relative to condemnation.
VII. RSA 199:26, relative to penalty.
289:10 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
Approved: June 27, 2008
Effective Date: August 26, 2008