Section 20-26-7-47 - Review of school building usage; closure evaluation and procedure; determination of underutilization; agreement to purchase or lease; notice and response; department determination and review(a) The following definitions apply throughout this section: (1) "Covered school building" has the meaning set forth in IC 20-26-7.1-2.1.(2) "Current school year" refers to a year in which the governing body is required to conduct a review of school building usage under subsection (c).(3) "Enrollment" refers to the following: (A) Except as provided in clause (B), students counted in ADM (as defined in IC 20-43-1-6) in the first count date for a school year fixed under IC 20-43-4-3.(B) With regard to a school corporation, students counted in a school corporation's fall count of ADM minus all students counted in the fall count of ADM who are enrolled in eligible schools that: (i) have entered into an agreement with the school corporation to participate as a participating innovation network charter school under IC 20-25.7-5; and(ii) are included in the school corporation's fall ADM count.(4) "Interested person" has the meaning set forth in IC 20-26-7.1-2.2.(b) This section applies to a school corporation only if:(1) the total student enrollment for in-person instruction in the school corporation in the current school year is at least ten percent (10%) less than the student enrollment for in-person instruction in the school corporation in a school year that precedes the current school year by five (5); and(2) the school corporation in the current school year has more than one (1) school building serving the same grade level as the school building subject to closure under this section.(c) Each school year, the governing body of a school corporation shall review the usage of school buildings used by the school corporation to determine whether any school building should be closed for the ensuing school year and subsequent school years.(d) A school corporation shall close a school building for the ensuing school year (and subsequent school years) if:(1) at any time the school building had been used for classroom instruction;(2) in the current school year and the two (2) school years immediately preceding the current school year the school building was underutilized for classroom instruction purposes or other allowable uses specified by this section;(3) as of the end of the school year before the school building is required to be closed under this section, the school corporation was not subject to a transitional plan adopted by the governing body and approved by the department to use the school building for an allowable use not later than the next school year after the school building is otherwise required to be closed under this section;(4) in the case of a school building that was used in any part in the current school year for instructional purposes, the school corporation has another school building: (A) with sufficient capacity to take the students using the school building being considered for closure; and(B) that does not require more than twenty (20) minutes of travel time by car or bus from the school building being considered for closure; and(5) the school building is not a school building described in IC 20-26-7.1-1, IC 20-26-7.1-3(b), IC 20-26-7.1-3(c), or IC 20-26-7.1-3(d).(e) For purposes of this section, a school building is underutilized in a school year if the school building is not used for any of the following allowable uses: (1) The number of full-time equivalent students enrolled for in-person instruction in the school building on instructional days (as determined under IC 20-30-2) for instructional purposes, averaged over the current school year and the two (2) school years immediately preceding the current school year, is at least fifty percent (50%) of: (A) the known classroom design capacity of the school building; or(B) if the design capacity is not known, the average maximum full-time equivalent enrollment in any of the last twenty-five (25) years, as validated by records created or maintained by the department.(2) The school corporation demonstrates through facts included in a resolution that the school building is being used and that it is financially prudent to continue to use the school building, considering all community resources, for a distinct student population that reasonably cannot be served through integration with the general school population, such as students attending an alternative education program (as defined in IC 20-30-8-1). However, to be an allowable use under this subdivision, the average number of full-time equivalent students using the school building in a school year for instructional purposes must be at least thirty percent (30%) of: (A) the known classroom design capacity of the school building; or(B) if the design capacity is not known, the average maximum full-time equivalent enrollment in any of the last twenty-five (25) years, as validated by records created or maintained by the department; and (if multiple school buildings are used for the same purposes) combining the student populations into fewer school buildings is not reasonably feasible.
(3) The school corporation demonstrates through facts included in a resolution that the school building is being used and that it is financially prudent to continue to use the school building, considering all community resources, for administrative or other school offices. However, to be an allowable use under this subdivision, at least fifty percent (50%) of the square footage of the school building must be used for offices, the personnel headquartered in the school building must consistently use the space for office purposes, and the occupancy cost of using the school building cannot be more than comparable office space that is available in the school district.(4) The school corporation demonstrates through facts included in a resolution that the school building is being used and that it is financially prudent to continue to use the school building, considering all community resources, for storage. However, to be an allowable use under this subdivision, at least fifty percent (50%) of the square footage of the school building must be used for storage, on average the storage space must be used to capacity, and the cost of using the school building for storage must be less than comparable storage space that is available in the school district.(5) The school corporation demonstrates through facts included in a resolution that the school building is being used and that it is financially prudent to continue to use the school building, considering all community resources, for a combination of office space and storage. However, to be an allowable use under this subdivision, at least fifty percent (50%) of the square footage of the school building must be used for a combination of office space and storage and: (A) the personnel headquartered in the school building must consistently use the office space for office purposes, and the occupancy cost of using the office space, calculated using the costs of operating the school building, cannot be more than comparable office space that is available in the school district; and(B) on average, the storage space must be used to capacity and the cost of using the school building for storage must be less than comparable storage space that is available in the school district.(f) Closure of a school building that is:(1) owned by the school corporation or any other entity that is related in any way to, or created by, the school corporation or the governing body; or(2) jointly owned in the same manner by two (2) or more school corporations; shall be carried out in conformity with IC 20-26-7.1.
(g) Before filing a petition under subsection (h), a charter school or state educational institution that is interested in a school corporation's school building must give written notice to the school corporation to determine whether an agreement can be reached regarding the school corporation making the school building available for lease or purchase under IC 20-26-7.1.(h) If an agreement is not reached within forty-five (45) days after the date that the school corporation receives the notice under subsection (g), the charter school or state educational institution may petition the department to initiate or the department on its own may initiate a proceeding for a determination as to whether a school building meets the criteria for closure under this section or a covered school building that is no longer used for classroom instruction by a school corporation should be made available under IC 20-26-7.1. If a charter school or state educational institution petitions the department under this subsection, the charter school or state educational institution must provide a copy of the petition to the applicable school corporation.(i) An interested person that is not otherwise a party to the proceeding may intervene in the proceeding under subsection (h) as a party. The school corporation has the burden of going forward with the evidence and the burden of proof to demonstrate that the school building does not meet the criteria for closure or the covered school building is not required to be made available under IC 20-26-7.1.(j) Not more than sixty (60) days after receiving notice of a petition under subsection (h), the school corporation must:(1) file a response to the petition that notifies the department that the school corporation: (A) is not contesting the petition; or(B) is contesting the petition and states the facts upon which the school corporation relies in contesting the petition; and(2) provide a copy of the response to the petitioner and any intervening party.(k) If the school corporation:(1) files a response that the school corporation is not contesting the petition; or(2) fails to submit a timely response under subsection (j); the department shall issue an order granting the petition. A petition and any response or reply are public documents.
(l) If a school corporation contests a petition under subsection (j), a party to the proceeding has not more than sixty (60) days after the date that the school corporation files a response under subsection (j) to submit a reply to the school corporation's response.(m) The department shall make a determination regarding a petition under subsection (h) not more than one hundred twenty (120) days after the date that the: (1) petitioner and any intervening party have submitted a reply under subsection (l); or(2) time period to reply under subsection (l) has expired.(n) A school corporation or another party to the proceeding may file with the state board a petition requesting review of the department's determination. Upon receipt of a petition under this subsection, the state board shall review the department's determination. An appeal to the state board shall be subject to the procedure described in IC 20-26-11-15(b).(o) Upon the issuance of a final unappealable order granting a petition, the school corporation shall make the school building available for lease or purchase in accordance with IC 20-26-7.1.Amended by P.L. 36-2024,SEC. 2, eff. 7/1/2024.Added by P.L. 189-2023,SEC. 9, eff. 7/1/2023.