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 school will be reduced on a pro-rata basis.
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.
