The Commission for Arkansas Public School Academic Facilities and Transportation (CAPSAFT) authority for promulgating these Rules is pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. §§ 6-21-114, 6-20-2507, 6-20-2512, 25-15-201et seq., and Act 1080 of 2019.
When a school district is proposing a new construction project on an existing campus with existing educational facilities, the district shall submit a POR of the existing campus and the Division shall compare the appropriate existing total gross square footage space of the existing facility on the campus to the total gross square footage space requirements of the POR for the proposed new school facility based on the projected student enrollment by grade level. After making the comparison, the school will only be deemed to not be suitable and thus eligible for state financial participation on a proposed facility project for the additional gross square footage space required in the POR not currently available on the school campus (based on the Division's campus reports or other confirmed information made available to the Division) or on other campuses affected by grade reconfigurations as part of the project. The district shall submit PORs for all campuses and grades affected by the grade reconfigurations which are a part of the project. However, the state recognizes that four particular space areas existing in school districts on or before 2008 may skew the comparison of existing space to that of the required POR space. Therefore, the Division will not count as existing space that total gross footage area above the required POR standard for the following four areas that existed on or before 2008: Physical Education, Media Center, Student Dining, and Performing Arts.
When a school district is proposing a new construction project on a school campus for which the Division determines there are no other currently existing appropriate school facilities or the district is seeking a separate LEA number for the new academic facility, the district shall submit a POR for the new school campus and the Division shall compare the total gross square footage required by the POR for the proposed facility for the appropriate student grade population to that currently existing total gross square footage available in the district (based on the Division's campus and district reports or other confirmed information made available to the Division) for the appropriate student grade population in their final grade configuration less the gross square footage to be demolished as part of the proposed project. The Division also shall include other campuses and grades affected by grade reconfigurations as part of the project. The district shall submit PORs for all campuses and grades affected by the grade reconfigurations that are a part of the project. After making the comparison, the school only will be deemed to not be suitable and thus eligible for state financial participation on a proposed facility project for that additional space required in the POR not currently available in the school district for the appropriate student population in their final grade reconfiguration. The State recognizes that four particular space areas existing in the school district may skew the comparison as mentioned above in Section 3.35.1 of these Rules in the "on an existing campus" comparison. As a result, the Division will give the same consideration and not count as existing space that total gross footage area above the required POR standard already existing in the district on or before 2008.
* Warm, Safe, and Dry;
* New facilities;
* Add-ons and/or Conversions; and
* Consolidation/annexation projects.
If the state provides financial participation for an add-on or conversion project, or a consolidation/annexation project that adds space to an existing campus, the district must construct any missing component to the POR specification.
The district will have to submit an accurate and complete POR, to include all existing spaces. If the POR indicates deficient space components, the district must satisfy these components in the following order:
* Academic Core Areas;
* Special Education;
* Student Dining;
* Administrative
The state will not participate in add-on projects concerning gymnasiums, media centers and/or auditoriums if the district already has this space or is in need (according to the POR) of Academic Core Areas, Special Education, or Student Dining Areas.
The state will consider the replacement of demolished space to be a prudent and resourceful expenditure of state funds issue. School districts are encouraged to discuss such issues with the Division before entering into demolition projects when the districts will be filing applications for state partnership assistance.
School districts applying for state financial participation for projects that support their Facilities Master Plan shall file applications (and approved PORs, resolutions, schematic drawings, and other required documentation) in a format prescribed by the Division and shall list the applications in the district's Facilities Master Plan. No project shall be considered for state financial partnership participation unless it is included in the district's Facilities Master Plan.
For the 2021-2023 project funding cycle all Warm, Safe, and Dry (Systems) new construction projects for which the Commission determines that a school district is currently not in suitable condition shall be entitled to receive state partnership assistance in a ranking of third order priority. The Warm, Safe, and Dry (Systems) projects shall be prioritized as follows:
First, the Division shall numerically rank all school projects based on the academic facilities wealth index of the school district. The districts with the least wealth index shall be ranked first with the districts with the greater wealth index numerically ranked last.
Second, the Division shall numerically rank all school projects based on the third-quarter average daily membership (ADM) of the school district for the school year in which the application for state partnership assistance is filed. The districts with the least ADM shall be ranked first with the districts with the greater ADM numerically ranked last.
Third, the Division shall average the numerical ADM and wealth index ranking of each school's project. Once each project is averaged, the Division shall establish a ranked order with the projects with the lowest average score being ranked first and the projects with the highest average score being ranked last.
For the 2021-2023 project funding cycle, all new facilities, add-ons, and conversion partnership projects which are approved by the Commission because a school district or campus is currently deemed not suitable shall be ranked and, thus, entitled to receive state partnership assistance in a ranking of first order priority to any other partnership project according to the following procedure of ranked order, subject to the availability of funds:
The Division shall numerically rank all new facilities, add-ons, and conversion projects based on a ten (10) year actual growth of student population review with the districts with the greatest percentage of growth being ranked first and districts with the least percentage of student growth ranked last. The growth is measured by showing (on a percentage basis) the student population growth when comparing the three quarter average daily membership of the district ten (10) years ago to the district's three quarter average daily membership in the previously completed school year. If a district has not been in existence for at least ten (10) school years as a result of the annexation or consolidation of other districts into it or with it, then for any years within the last ten (10) years for which the district was not in existence its three quarter average daily membership shall be the sum of the three quarter average daily membership of those former school districts that now comprise the school district applying for state financial participation.
Conversion projects will be reviewed against POR requirements to determine compliance with the POR. If the Division determines that the project qualifies for state financial participation, then the project will be subject to the conditions set forth in Sections 4.00 and 5.00 of these Rules. Projects in this Section shall be entitled to receive state partnership assistance in a ranking of first priority order.
For the 2021-2023 project funding cycle, all Warm, Safe, and Dry (Space Replacement) new construction projects for which the Commission determines that a school district is currently not in suitable condition shall be entitled to receive state partnership assistance in a ranking of second order priority to any other partnership project according to the following procedure of ranked order, subject to the availability of funds. To the extent there is limited funding available, the Warm, Safe, and Dry (Space Replacement) projects shall be prioritized according to the school district's wealth index and the campus or campuses value (depending upon the type of project for which the district applies for state partnership assistance).
First, the Division shall numerically rank all Warm, Safe, and Dry (Space Replacement) projects based on the campus (or campuses) value depending on what type of project is proposed. The projects with the lowest campus value shall be ranked first and in ascending order to the projects with the greatest campus value. Second, the Division shall numerically rank all Warm, Safe, and Dry (Space Replacement) projects based on the wealth index of the school district. The districts with the least wealth index shall be ranked first with the districts with the greater wealth index numerically ranked last.
Third, the Division shall average the campus value and wealth index ranking of each school's Warm, Safe, and Dry (Space Replacement) project. Once each project is averaged, the Division shall establish a ranked order with the projects with the lowest average score being ranked first and the projects with the highest average score being ranked last.
Any project for which the Commission determines the district or campus is currently suitable shall not be entitled for any state partnership assistance in that year's partnership cycle.
The suitability analysis and determination of Warm, Safe, and Dry (Space Replacement) projects shall be performed as per Section 3.35.
Projects in this Section shall be entitled to receive state partnership assistance in a ranking of second priority order.
All projects that fall within the definition of "consolidation/annexation project" listed in Section 3.11 above and that meet all of the requirements of this Section shall be entitled to apply for state Partnership assistance. To the extent that funding is available, consolidation/annexation projects shall be evaluated and funded based upon the following criteria:
Growth Index: For those projects meeting the definition of a "consolidation/annexation" project and which comply with the requirements of this Section, the Division will numerically rank the consolidated/annexed school district's growth index at the greater of the following two levels:
The Division's notice of its decision on a school district's application for state financial participation in a new construction project shall include an explanation of the evaluation factors underlying the decision of the Division to provide or not provide state financial participation in support of the new construction project.
Construction of the project, as evidenced by a signed construction contract, must begin within eighteen (18) months from the date of the final approval of the project by the Commission. The district must obtain the Division's approval of the completion of all district project requirements within four (4) years from the date of final approval of the project by the Commission. For the purposes of this subsection, the phrase "signed construction contract" includes construction management contracts.
A district may request a waiver of timelines in Section 7.07 of these Rules if the district believes it can show unusual and limited circumstances which prevent it from meeting the timelines. State financial participation in a district's project is contingent upon the district meeting all timelines and deadlines set forth in these Rules. Absent an approved appeal or waiver, the Division may render the state's financial participation in a district's project null and void in whole or in part for failure to meet all of the timelines and deadlines set forth in these Rules and may recapture any state partnership funding assistance funds already paid to the district.
Transportation.
203.01.21 Ark. Code R. § 001