This bill amends the process for prioritizing applications for school building aid grants by removing the requirement that applications from previous fiscal years that did not receive funding must be ranked ahead of newer applications. Specifically, it eliminates the prioritization of applications that received insufficient funds in the prior year and those with critical needs over newer applications. The new legal language allows for applications to be funded based on available appropriations in the fiscal year, and it permits school districts or chartered public schools to resubmit projects for future consideration if they did not receive state grant funding during the biennial budget.

Additionally, the bill introduces provisions for the Department of Education to create rules to implement these changes effectively. It maintains that applications with critical needs may still be prioritized, but it allows for a more flexible approach to ranking applications based on current needs and available funding. The overall impact of this bill is expected to be minimal, as it does not significantly alter the existing application process or increase the workload for the Department of Education or local districts.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 198:15-a, 198:15-w
As Amended by the House: 198:15-c