Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 50, December 13, 2024
Section 164-2-4 - Awarding of Funds4.1. Any project for which funds are being requested from the SBA must be part of an approved CEFP identified either as a major need or major improvement. 4.1.A. Multi-County / Statewide Grants. 4.1.A.1. Projects eligible for Multi-County / statewide funds include any facility that serves the educational community statewide or houses educational programs that are under the jurisdiction of the WVBE, and multi-county vocational-technical centers.4.1.A.2. Projects submitted for competitive funding from the Multi-County designation must include information regarding the following areas as described in the WVBE Policy 6200 wherein applicable: 4.1.A.2.a. An analysis of the community being served.4.1.A.2.b. A study of the population and enrollment.4.1.A.2.c. The education plan.4.1.A.2.d. An evaluation of the existing facility.4.1.A.2.e. The financing plan for the project.4.1.A.2.f. Translation of educational needs into facility needs.4.1.A.2.g. A School Construction Fund Project ("Needs") Executive Summary4.1.A.2.h. An explanation of how the project relates to the major items presented WV Code § 18-9D-16(d).4.1.A.3. All projects submitted for Multi-County / Statewide Grant funding shall be submitted directly to the SBA which shall be solely responsible for the evaluation and selection of all projects.4.1.A.4. Projects submitted that are under the jurisdiction of the WVBE will be forwarded by the SBA to the WVBE for review and recommendation.4.1.B. Five Percent (5) Multi-Use Vocational-Technical Education Facilities Funds. An amount up to 5% of available funds from the school construction funds may be made available by the Authority during any funding cycle for projects at Multi-Use Vocational-Technical Education Facilities. Projects eligible for five percent (5%) statewide funds include:4.1.B.1. Any facility that serves the vocational-technical educational community and,4.1.B.2. Is under the jurisdiction of the WVBE, a county board of education, a Regional Administrative Council, or joint Administrative Board that may include post secondary programs as a first priority. Projects funded from the five percent (5%) vocational fund may include expenditures for equipment and equipment updates. Project applications shall be submitted to the Authority in accordance with the Needs Grant Fund process described in 2.4 E. Prior to distribution of funds in any given funding cycle, the Authority shall consider the amount, up to 5% of the total available for distribution that shall be set aside for this purpose.4.1.C. "Emergency" Funds.4.1.C.1. The Emergency Fund is available at the discretion of the Authority to assist where emergency situations endanger a safe and healthful environment for students.4.1.C.2. To qualify for a grant from the emergency fund:4.1.C.2.a. Need must have been generated by an unforeseeable catastrophic event (i.e., fire, wind, earthquake, flood, storm, etc.), general disaster or Act of War.4.1.C.2.b. Funds from federal, state and local sources for emergency repairs and replacements must have been identified and included in the project budget.4.1.C.2.c. All insurance claims must have been filed and amount of settlement determined. Insurance coverage of a facility should be equal to the cost of replacement.4.1.C.3. State School Improvement funds including Emergency Grants will only be considered for buildings covered by flood insurance or buildings effected by flooding that are outside the established 100-year flood plain and therefore not eligible for flood insurance. Buildings eligible for flood insurance but not insured by the county will not be eligible for SBA funding.4.1.C.4. Because of limited resources in the Emergency Fund, and to encourage local boards of education to appropriately insure their facilities, grants from the Emergency Fund shall be limited to an amount not to exceed two million dollars for any and all damage to schools incurred during any given catastrophic event.4.1.C.5. Application shall be made within ten days after said emergency to the SBA and in accordance with guidelines established by the Authority.4.1.D. CEFP Planning Grants. 4.1.D.1. It is the responsibility of each county to develop and implement a ten-year Comprehensive Educational Facilities Plan (CEFP) in accordance with WVBE Policy 6200 beginning with the year 1990 and for each successive ten-year planning period thereafter.4.1.D.2. The SBA may provide a grant during the allotted planning period to attain professional consultation in the development of said county-wide CEFP. A grant extension may be granted by the Authority upon request for a period not to exceed 12 months. Any monies remaining in the fund shall be expired and transferred to the construction fund.4.1.D.3. The effective date for new CEFPs shall be established by the Authority per the WVBE Policy 6200 and WV Code.4.1.D.4. The SBA and WVBE may monitor the planning process and set submission deadlines for portions of the CEFP.4.1.E. School Construction Funds "Needs" Grants. 4.1.E.1. Each county in West Virginia who has an approved CEFP is eligible for capital improvement funds from the SBA based on the needs of the facilities in their district.4.1.E.2. Each county is responsible for determining in their facilities plan the specific project(s) for which SBA School Construction Fund ("Needs") will be requested and submit a "Needs" Executive Summary. This individual project will be fully developed in regard to the issues indicated in WV Code § 18-9D-16(a)(3)(d).4.1.E.3. Proposals for School Construction Fund projects must be part of an approved CEFP and submitted at the request of the Authority based upon the availability of funds for distribution.4.1.E.4. The SBA may appoint a plan review advisory team to assist the SBA staff in an advisory role during the review of each project submitted by the counties. The Authority reserves the right to request review of any or all projects submitted to them that they feel has special merit or extenuating circumstances.4.1.E.5. The Authority will review and evaluate the projects based upon criteria set forth in W. Va. Code § 18-9D-16(d) and SBA Policy. The SBA staff will provide on-site information and project evaluations for all projects to the Authority for final review and funding consideration along with a prioritized list of potential projects based on staff and advisory team (when applicable) evaluations. At the conclusion of each funding cycle, each county shall receive an explanation of the evaluating factors underlining the decision of the Authority to fund or not to fund the project. Additionally, prior to final action on approving projects for funding, the Authority shall submit a certified list of the projects to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance.4.1.F. Major Improvement Funds. 4.1.F.1. Each county or educational agency that has an approved Major Improvement Plan (MIP) as part of an approved CEFP and has submitted annual maintenance plans as required by this rule is eligible for capital improvement funds from the SBA's Major Improvement Fund.4.1.F.2. Major Improvement Plan (MIPs) are developed by each county or educational agency in accordance with the guidelines approved by the SBA. The MIP shall address how the proposed plan, and any project in it, meets the goals and objectives in accordance with guidelines established by the Authority.4.1.F.3. Each county shall submit as part of their annual CEFP Update a prioritized list of MIP projects for SBA review. The most needed project shall be further developed to address the criteria in accordance with guidelines established by the Authority and submitted for funding consideration.4.1.F.4. The SBA shall review and rate the projects for funding each year in accordance with guidelines of objective criteria for projects evaluation as described in WV Code § 18-9D-16(a)(3)(d).4.1.F.5. MIP Funds shall expire based on a two-year contractual agreement between the SBA and the grantee. An extension of funds will not be granted.4.1.G. School Access Safety Grants. Each county board with an approved School Access Safety Plan who meets the eligibility requirements of the School Access Safety Act will qualify for school access funds.4.1.H. Reserve Funds - Needs Projects. SBA Reserve Grant funding may be provided by the Authority at it's discretion in an amount not to exceed $500,000 for meritorious projects determined to be eligible under the "Needs" based school construction fund. These funds shall be set aside and not expended awaiting final approval of the project budget by the SBA. The purpose of these funds is to establish SBA support for a project and to acknowledge the intent of the Authority to fund the appropriate balance of the project as funds become available and the county finalizes an SBA approved finance plan for the project. These funds will be held by the Authority for a period established in the grant agreement between the county board and the SBA not to exceed eighteen months. Upon approval of the actual needs grant to develop the project an additional three (3) years will be provided to complete the design and construction of the facilities established in W. Va. Code § 18-9D-15(f). Should the grant recipient fail to secure the remaining project funds to complete the entire finance plan for the project these funds will automatically revert to the school construction fund and be made available for distribution to other projects.