July 6, 2006
Dear Charter School Administrators:
CHARTER SCHOOL FACILITY GRANT PROGRAM
The Charter School Facility Grant Program was enacted by Senate Bill (SB) 740, Chapter 892, Statutes of 2001, Education Code Section 47614.5 (Outside Source) for the purpose of providing assistance with facilities rent and lease expenditures for charter schools that meet certain eligibility criteria. Eligible charter schools may receive reimbursement for facilities rent and lease costs in an amount of up to $750 per unit of classroom-based average daily attendance (ADA), as certified at the 2005-06 second principal apportionment, but no more than 75 percent of their total annual facilities rent and lease costs. If there are insufficient funds to reimburse all eligible charter schools at the maximum level, the funding provided to each eligible school will be reduced on a pro-rata basis. It is anticipated that funding will be distributed in the fall of 2006; however, distribution of funding will be contingent upon approval of the 2006-07 budget and any amendments.
To be eligible for reimbursement, a charter school site must be geographically located within the attendance area of a public elementary school in which at least 70 percent of the pupil enrollment is eligible for free or reduced price meals, or serving a pupil population that meets or exceeds 70 percent eligibility for free and reduced price meals.
Charter schools occupying existing school district or county office of education facilities and charter schools receiving reasonably equivalent facilities from their chartering authority pursuant to Education Code Section 47614 (Outside Source) (Proposition 39) are not eligible for reimbursement.
Additional conditions of the Charter School Facility Grant Program provide that:
- Charter schools receiving funding through this program that have exceeded their enrollment capacity must extend admissions preference to those students currently attending the charter school and to those students who reside in the elementary school attendance area in which the charter school is located, and
- Charter schools relocating to the attendance area of an eligible elementary school must give admissions preference to the students who reside in the eligible elementary school's attendance area.
These conditions are intended to ensure that the needs of students residing in predominantly financially disadvantaged areas are also being met.
To apply for reimbursement funding for expenditures incurred during the 2005-06 fiscal year, charter schools must submit a 2006-07 Application for Eligibility and a 2006-07 Facility Expenditure Report. (Even if you received funding under this program for 2004-05 eligibility must be established annually.) Multi-site charters must submit a separate application for each site for which they are seeking reimbursement. Copies of the required forms will be posted on the California Department of Education (CDE) Web site located at http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/r1/csfacgrnt06rfa.asp . The completed forms will be due in our office by August 22, 2006.
We will determine the eligibility of your school for this program based on the Application for Eligibility and the Free and Reduced Price Meals data on file at the CDE. Your Facility Expenditure Report will only be considered if your school is eligible based on the Free and Reduced Price Meals data.
We will determine the amount of reimbursement after all eligible applicants have submitted their applications and expenditure reports. All information provided on the application and expenditure report is subject to audit to ensure compliance with program requirements.
If you have any questions about this letter or the Charter School Facility Grant Program, please contact Oluwole Olukoya at (916) 327-5929 or by e-mail at oolukoya@cde.ca.gov.
Sincerely,
Marta Reyes, Director
Charter School Division
MR:oo
1430 N Street
Sacramento, CA 95814