Qualified Zone Academy Bond

Funding Description

Qualified Zone Academy Bond (QZAB) offers local educational agencies (LEAs) the ability to sell tax-exempt bonds and use the revenue, essentially a loan, to form academy partnerships with for-profit business partners. The program serves all students by incorporating job-related relevance--in the form of technology, training, equipment, materials, etc.--into the classroom.

Eligibility

Eligible Applicants	Local educational agencies
Required Eligibility Criteria	To be eligible to apply for the QZAB program, LEAs must be in a designated Empowerment Zone, Enterprise Community, or have at least 35 percent of its student population receiving free or reduced lunches. The LEA must also have an agreement with a business or industry partner that has agreed to provide at least 10 percent toward the cost of the program. Note: A third round of applications is now being accepted with an open due date. For more information, please refer to the Request for Application web site.
Other Eligibility Considerations	Not applicable
Eligible Grade Level(s)	K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Eligible Age Level(s)	Not applicable

Funding

Legal Authority	Section 107 of H.R. 6111, Section 1397E of the Internal Revenue Code
Source / Type	Federal / Grant
State Fiscal Year	2007-08
SACS Resource / Revenue Codes	9010 / 8979
Total Available	$65,863,108
Recipient Amount	$2,500,000 per academy
Match Requirement	Yes
Allocation Formula	Unavailable

Important Dates

Date Application Available	August 20, 2008
Due Date	Unavailable
Expected Notification Date	Unavailable

Additional Information

Application	2006-2007 Qualified Zone Academy Bond Program [http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/r13/qzabapp06rfa.asp]
Background	Qualified Zone Academy Bond (QZAB) [http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/fa/qz/]
Fiscal	2006-2007 QZAB Results  [http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/fa/qz/qzab0607results.asp]
Other	Authorization is for calendar years 2006 and 2007. The funding amount for 2006 is $48,404,000 and for 2007 is $48,404,000. On September 1, 2007 successful applicants from the first round were notified of their award. Second round applicants were notified on April 2, 2008 of their award. There is additional authorization remaining in the amount of $65,863,108.

Contacts

Program	Shannon Farrell-Hart, 916-323-3923, sfarrell@cde.ca.gov
Fiscal	Shannon Farrell-Hart, 916-323-3923, sfarrell@cde.ca.gov
Division	School Facilities & Transportation Services, 916-322-2470 (phone), 916-327-3954 (fax)