Revision: March 31, 2010, midnight
SB 486-FN – AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
03/10/10 0911s
03/24/10 1130s
2010 SESSION
04/03
SENATE BILL 486-FN
AN ACT relative to the school building aid program.
SPONSORS: Sen. Kelly, Dist 10; Sen. Janeway, Dist 7; Sen. D'Allesandro, Dist 20
This bill:
I. Provides that no school building aid or alternative school building aid grants shall be made to school districts for projects approved on or after June 30, 2010 through June 30, 2011.
II. Provides that the commissioner of the department of education, in consultation with the state fire marshal, may grant a waiver to the suspension of school building aid if the state fire marshal or designee determines, based on reasonable information and belief, that the condition of such school building or portion thereof constitutes a clear and imminent danger to the life or safety of occupants or other persons, or that a school building or portion thereof has egress, fire spread, or structural deficiencies that present a substantial risk to the occupants or other persons and require remediation prior to July 1, 2011.
III. Amends the membership and duties of the committee to study the school building aid grant program established in 2009, 144:13.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
03/10/10 0911s
03/24/10 1130s
10-2768
04/03
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Ten
AN ACT relative to the school building aid program.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Statement of Purpose.
I. The general court recognizes that the state of New Hampshire has a role in providing financial assistance for school building costs to ensure that all children can attend safe and viable schools.
II. The committee on school building aid established by 2009 Laws, chapter 144 found in its interim report dated December 15, 2009 that the cost of program financing has grown 150 percent in the last decade and that the existing growth rate of the present school building aid program is not sustainable indefinitely into the future. The committee recommended that the general court honor its outstanding obligations for school building aid. At the same time, the committee recognized the need to redesign the state's school building aid program to ensure that children in every part of the state attend school in suitable buildings while also ensuring that eligibility criteria provide access to aid to those communities with the greatest need.
III. The committee further recommended that the general court consider implementing a temporary one-year suspension of school building aid to provide the committee sufficient time to complete its review of the future structure and operation of the school building aid program and present any findings and recommendations for subsequent legislative deliberation and action. The general court finds that such a temporary suspension is needed both to redesign the current program and to provide school districts and municipalities with sufficient notice of the redesigned program prior to consideration of future school construction.
IV. In finding that a temporary one-year suspension in the building aid program will allow for the redesign of the program to ensure for its long-term sustainability, the general court recognizes and agrees, as the committee found in its interim report, that there should be a waiver process during the suspension period to address remediation of school buildings prior to the end of the suspension period.
2 School Building Aid; Alternative School Building Aid.
I. Notwithstanding RSA 198:15-a through RSA 198:15-hh and RSA 198:15-u through RSA 198:15-w, and notwithstanding the school building aid funding provisions of 2009, 144:11, the commissioner of the department of education shall issue no school building aid or alternative school building aid for any project approved on or after June 30, 2010 through June 30, 2011.
II. The commissioner of the department of education, in consultation with the state fire marshal, may grant a waiver to the suspension of school building aid under paragraph I if the state fire marshal or designee determines, based on reasonable information and belief, that:
(a) The condition of such school building or portion thereof constitutes a clear and imminent danger to the life or safety of occupants or other persons; or
(b) Any egress, fire spread, or structural deficiencies in a school building or portion thereof present a substantial risk to the occupants or other persons and require remediation prior to July 1, 2011. Any school building aid provided under a waiver granted pursuant to this paragraph shall be limited to the costs associated with the remediation of the conditions that are determined either to pose a clear and imminent danger to the life or safety of persons or that are otherwise determined to require attention prior to July 1, 2011 due to a substantial risk from egress, fire spread, or structural deficiencies.
3 Committee to Study the School Building Aid Grant Program; Membership. Amend 2009, 144:13, I(a)-(b) to read as follows:
(a) [Two] Three members of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.
(b) [Three] Four members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.
4 Committee to Study the School Building Aid Grant Program; Duties. Amend 2009, 144:13, IV to read as follows:
IV. The committee [may] shall solicit and [receive] consider testimony and other information on the goals, procedures, structure, and operation of the school building aid grant program from any person or organization with information or expertise relevant to the committee’s objective in connection with the formulation of any findings or recommendations for proposed legislation.
5 Committee to Study the School Building Aid Grant Program. Amend 2009, 144:13, VI to read as follows:
VI. The committee shall submit an interim report on or before December 15, 2009 and, following a public hearing on a draft final report, a final report on or before [November] December 1, 2010, containing [its] any findings and [any] recommendations for proposed legislation to the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate clerk, the house clerk, the governor, and the state library.
6 Effective Date.
I. Section 2 of this act shall take effect June 30, 2010.
II. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
LBAO
10-2768 Amended 03/29/10
SB 486 FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to the school building aid program.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Department of Education states this bill, as amended by the Senate (Amendment #2010-1130s), will decrease local expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2011 and decrease state general fund expenditures and local revenue by an indeterminable amount in FY 2013 and each fiscal year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on state and county revenue or county expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Department of Education states this bill suspends the school building aid program in FY 2011. The Department made the following assumptions when analyzing the fiscal impact of this bill:
• The school building aid program will be funded with state general funds in FY 2012 and each fiscal year thereafter.
• “Any project approved” means approved by the legislative body of a school district.
• School districts will not proceed with school building projects in FY 2011 due to the suspension of building aid.
The Department states the fiscal impact of this bill cannot be determined because it cannot predict what projects will be approved by school districts between June 30, 2010 and June 30, 2011, under current law or under this bill. In addition, the Department cannot calculate the costs of those projects. The Department states typically when a school district approves a building project in a certain fiscal year, the Department begins providing building aid two fiscal years later. Therefore, it is assumed this bill will reduce local expenditures for school building projects during FY 2011, followed by a reduction in state general fund expenditures and local revenue in FY 2013 and each fiscal year thereafter because no building aid payments will be made in those years for projects that would have been approved in FY 2011 under current law. The Department notes state and local costs may increase in FY 2014 and later years due to inflation in construction costs for projects that are delayed.
The Department states the fiscal impact of allowing state building aid for projects caused by safety concerns cannot be determined, but is expected to be minimal. The standard of clear or imminent danger would require immediate corrective action that cannot wait for a bond vote. Such action could involve temporary measures that could remain in effect for a year without endangering staff or students. The Department does not expect it will be necessary to approve any projects under the life safety provision of this bill.