§ 22-43.7-201. Full-Day Kindergarten Facility Capital Construction Fund – Creation – Grants – Definitions

1. The full-day kindergarten facility capital construction fund, referred to in this part 2 as the “fund”, is hereby created in the state treasury. The fund consists of any money that the general assembly may appropriate or transfer to the fund. The state treasurer shall credit all interest and income derived from the deposit and investment of money in the fund to the fund. Subject to annual appropriation by the general assembly, the public school capital construction assistance board may expend money from the fund as specified in this part 2.
2. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (4) of this section, the public school capital construction assistance board shall use the money in the fund to provide grants or matching grants to any school district or institute charter school that is undertaking a capital construction project to renovate a facility, rent a facility, or provide a temporary auxiliary facility that will be used in conjunction with providing a full-day kindergarten program. The board shall award a grant or matching grant pursuant to this part 2 to a school district or institute charter school only if, without the grant or matching grant, the school district or institute charter school would be unable to provide a facility in which to offer a full day of kindergarten to more students than were offered a full day of kindergarten in the 2007-08 budget year. For purposes of this part 2, “temporary auxiliary facility” means a temporary building that will be placed on the same campus as a main educational facility.
3. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (4) of this section, each budget year, the board shall use fifty percent of the money in the fund to provide grants pursuant to this part 2 and fifty percent of the money in the fund to provide matching grants pursuant to this part 2.
4. 1. As used in this subsection (4), unless the context otherwise requires:
      1. “Applicant share percentage” means, with respect to an applicant, the percentage of total equitably adjusted funding statewide for both all applicants and all potential applicants who do not actually apply for grants as authorized by this subsection (4) represented by the equitably adjusted funding for the applicant.
      2. “Equitable adjustment factor” means, with respect to both an applicant and a potential applicant that does not actually apply for a grant as authorized by this subsection (4), the sum of the applicant’s:
         1. Size factor, as determined pursuant to section 22-54-104 (5)(b)(I.5);
         2. Percentage of enrolled pupils who are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch;
         3. Percentage of enrolled pupils who are English language learners, as defined in section 22-24-103 (4); and
         4. Percentage of enrolled pupils who are special education students.
      3. “Equitably adjusted funding” means, with respect to both an applicant and a potential applicant who does not actually apply for a grant as authorized by this subsection (4), the product of total applicant per pupil funding and the equitable adjustment factor.
      4. “Total applicant per pupil funding” means, with respect to both an applicant and a potential applicant who does not actually apply for a grant as authorized by this subsection (4), the product of the number of children enrolled in a full-day kindergarten educational program provided by the applicant during the 2019-20 budget year and the applicant’s per pupil funding amount, after application of section 22-54-104 (5)(g), for the 2019-20 budget year.
   2. On July 1, 2019, the state treasurer shall transfer twenty-five million dollars from the assistance fund to the fund. During the 2018-19 budget year, the board shall accept applications from applicants that will provide a full-day kindergarten educational program for the 2019-20 budget year for financial assistance in the form of formula-based grants in a total amount of up to twenty-five million dollars for the 2019-20 budget year. The board shall establish grant application requirements and deadlines that allow applicants to efficiently provide the information needed to allow the board to quickly determine the estimated amount of the formula-based grant to be awarded to each applicant and expedite distribution of the formula-based grants.
   3. The amount of the grant to be provided to each applicant pursuant to subsection (4)(b) of this section is determined by the following formula:
   4. On July 1, 2019, or as soon as feasible thereafter, the board shall cause to be distributed to each applicant eighty percent of the estimated amount of the applicant’s formula-based grant. As soon as feasible following the final determination of statewide and applicant full-day kindergarten enrollment for the 2019-20 budget year and no later than February 15, 2020, the board shall determine the final amount of each applicant’s formula-based grant and cause to be distributed to each applicant any additional amount needed to ensure that each applicant receives the full final amount of its grant.
   5. As soon as possible after receiving each distribution described in this section, the authorizer for a charter school that operates a full-day kindergarten educational program shall distribute to the charter school, in a lump sum, one hundred percent of the amount received that is attributable to the full-day kindergarten pupils enrolled in the charter school.
   6. An applicant may expend a formula-based grant received pursuant to this subsection (4) during the 2019-20 budget year for the purpose of acquiring furniture, fixtures, or other fixed or moveable equipment, excluding construction equipment, that is needed to conduct a full-day kindergarten educational program or a preschool educational program.

The lesser of $25,000,000 x the applicant share percentage or the amount actually applied for by the applicant. On July 1, 2020, the state treasurer shall transfer all unexpended and unencumbered state money in the full-day kindergarten facility capital construction fund to the state education fund created in section 17 (4) of article IX of the state constitution.

Source: L. 2008: Entire part added, p. 1214, § 26, effective May 22. L. 2011: (1) amended, (SB 11-218), ch. 151, p. 526, § 4, effective May 5. L. 2015: (1) amended, (SB 15-264), ch. 259, p. 956, § 53, effective August 5. L. 2019: Entire section amended, (HB 19-1055), ch. 246, p. 2404, § 3, effective May 21. L. 2020: (4)(c) amended, (HB 20-1418), ch. 197, p. 948, § 27, effective June 30.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 20-1418, see section 1 of chapter 197, Session Laws of Colorado 2020.