1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education; creating a high performance 
  1.3             school facility grant program; authorizing the sale of 
  1.4             bonds; appropriating money; proposing coding for new 
  1.5             law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 123B.  
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [123B.656] [HIGH PERFORMANCE SCHOOL FACILITY 
  1.8   GRANT PROGRAM.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [PURPOSE.] The high performance school 
  1.10  facility grant program is established to provide grants of up to 
  1.11  $....... to school districts to assist districts in funding the 
  1.12  additional costs of predesign and design and to incorporate 
  1.13  sustainable activities within their new construction and 
  1.14  renovation projects.  This grant program is the first phase of a 
  1.15  two-phase process.  The results of phase one will serve as the 
  1.16  basis for phase two.  Through future legislation, phase two will 
  1.17  seek changes to improve procedures, define funding resources, 
  1.18  and set performance requirements for design, construction, and 
  1.19  operation of high performance schools in Minnesota.  
  1.20     Subd. 2.  [GOALS.] The goals of the high performance school 
  1.21  facility grant program are to: 
  1.22     (1) reduce life cycle costs of schools; 
  1.23     (2) promote overall improvement in school building quality; 
  1.24     (3) allow school districts to shift the investment of 
  1.25  tax-generated school revenues from utility bills and excessive 
  2.1   maintenance repair costs to predesign and design of high 
  2.2   performance schools allowing a greater portion of state and 
  2.3   district resources to be allocated to the enhanced education of 
  2.4   Minnesota's children; 
  2.5      (4) provide quantified documentation of expectations and 
  2.6   results in design, engineering, construction, and commissioning 
  2.7   of high performance schools; 
  2.8      (5) provide clarity of roles and accountability in the 
  2.9   planning, design, and construction process; and 
  2.10     (6) provide decision-making information to school districts 
  2.11  that integrates many concerns, allowing for more holistic 
  2.12  decisions. 
  2.13     Subd. 3.  [ELIGIBILITY.] (a) The commissioner shall approve 
  2.14  grants to districts for the additional costs of predesign and 
  2.15  design of high performance construction projects.  A grant may 
  2.16  be made to a district that has demonstrated that it has complied 
  2.17  with all the appropriate provisions of this section and will 
  2.18  make adequate provisions to ensure proper and efficient 
  2.19  operation of the school facilities after completion. 
  2.20     (b) Grant recipients must retain firms that meet minimum 
  2.21  eligibility qualifications established by the commissioner.  
  2.22     Subd. 4.  [GRANT APPLICATION.] The commissioner of 
  2.23  children, families, and learning may establish criteria for 
  2.24  districts to apply for a grant under this section.  Districts 
  2.25  must apply to the commissioner according to the timelines and on 
  2.26  the forms provided by the commissioner. 
  2.27     Successful grant applicants must demonstrate the ability 
  2.28  and willingness to attain levels of performance that 
  2.29  substantially exceed current building code standards.  
  2.30     Subd. 5.  [DIRECTION TO COMMISSIONER.] (a) Beginning July 
  2.31  1, 2002, the commissioner must award grants on a competitive 
  2.32  basis for both new construction and renovation projects to 
  2.33  districts in a variety of geographic locations. 
  2.34     (b) The commissioner must issue a request for 
  2.35  qualifications to third-party professional services and select 
  2.36  service providers with demonstrated ability to provide services 
  3.1   necessary to meet the goals of this section.  Use of these 
  3.2   service providers must be one of the eligibility requirements 
  3.3   for district applications for a grant.  A request for proposals 
  3.4   must be issued to districts by January 1, 2003.  The request for 
  3.5   qualifications must be completed at least one month prior to 
  3.6   issuance of the request for proposals to districts.  Third-party 
  3.7   professional service providers are providers that meet the 
  3.8   qualification requirements set by the commissioner.  Third-party 
  3.9   professional service providers must provide predesign, project 
  3.10  monitoring, and commissioning services.  Third-party 
  3.11  professional service providers must not provide design or 
  3.12  construction services for the school construction project for 
  3.13  which a district applies for a grant.  The intent of designating 
  3.14  a third-party provider is to keep separate and nonconflicting 
  3.15  the roles and responsibilities of those setting and monitoring 
  3.16  performance standards from those hired to meet the performance 
  3.17  standards in design and construction.  
  3.18     (c) The commissioner must report to the legislative 
  3.19  committees responsible for kindergarten through grade 12 
  3.20  education by February 1, 2005.  The report must: 
  3.21     (1) document the overall approach used by high performance 
  3.22  school facility grant recipients; 
  3.23     (2) create, document, and use a model for school districts 
  3.24  throughout Minnesota that defines both the processes and 
  3.25  outcomes of designing, constructing, and operating high 
  3.26  performance schools in Minnesota; 
  3.27     (3) identify barriers to adopting high performance design 
  3.28  strategies and practices within state government and recommend 
  3.29  strategies for eliminating these barriers; 
  3.30     (4) identify the most innovative and cost-effective siting, 
  3.31  design, construction, maintenance, and operations practices in 
  3.32  use that are suited to Minnesota's climate; 
  3.33     (5) document cost and performance information on high 
  3.34  performance school building performance for at least ten years 
  3.35  of operation; 
  3.36     (6) integrate the innovative and cost-effective high 
  4.1   performance schools strategies into the review and comment 
  4.2   process under section 123B.71; 
  4.3      (7) make recommendations on the referendum and bonding 
  4.4   process so that final decisions reward school districts that 
  4.5   make a commitment to high performance school design; and 
  4.6      (8) make recommendations for phase two efforts to seek 
  4.7   changes to improve procedures, define funding resources, and set 
  4.8   performance requirements for design, construction, and operation 
  4.9   of high performance schools in Minnesota. 
  4.10     (d) The commissioner must serve as overall project 
  4.11  coordinator for the grant projects under this section. 
  4.12     Subd. 6.  [GRANT RECIPIENT REQUIREMENTS; INTEGRATED 
  4.13  FACILITY PLAN.] (a) High performance school facility grant 
  4.14  recipients must: 
  4.15     (1) work in partnership with the commissioner to establish 
  4.16  high performance schools performance standards; 
  4.17     (2) incorporate high performance building design strategies 
  4.18  into the new construction or renovation of a school facility; 
  4.19     (3) document and report to the commissioner on the school 
  4.20  facility construction or renovation project, describing in 
  4.21  detail the costs and benefits of using high performance design 
  4.22  strategies; and 
  4.23     (4) produce an integrated facility plan that creates an 
  4.24  overarching plan defining clear timelines for ongoing facility 
  4.25  optimization, maintenance, improvement, and repair. 
  4.26     (b) Grant recipients must submit an integrated facility 
  4.27  plan to the commissioner.  The integrated facility plan must: 
  4.28     (1) determine the timelines for the use of the new or 
  4.29  renovated facility; 
  4.30     (2) establish benchmarks for building performance; and 
  4.31     (3) establish goals for constructing new facilities or 
  4.32  renovating existing facilities. 
  4.33     Subd. 7.  [RULES.] The commissioner shall adopt rules 
  4.34  necessary to implement this section.  The rules shall contain as 
  4.35  a minimum: 
  4.36     (1) procedures for application by schools; 
  5.1      (2) criteria for reviewing grant applications; and 
  5.2      (3) procedures and guidelines for program monitoring, 
  5.3   closeout, and evaluation. 
  5.4      <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective July 1, 2002. 
  5.5      Sec. 2.  [APPROPRIATIONS.] 
  5.6      Subdivision 1.  [HIGH PERFORMANCE SCHOOL FACILITY GRANT 
  5.7   PROGRAM.] $2,000,000 is appropriated from the bond proceeds fund 
  5.8   to the commissioner of children, families, and learning for the 
  5.9   high performance school facility grant program under section 1. 
  5.10     Subd. 2.  [BONDS.] To provide the money appropriated by 
  5.11  this section from the bond proceeds fund, the commissioner of 
  5.12  finance shall sell and issue bonds of the state in an amount up 
  5.13  to $....... in the manner, on the terms, and with the effect 
  5.14  prescribed by Minnesota Statutes, sections 16A.631 to 16A.675, 
  5.15  and by the Minnesota Constitution, article XI, sections 4 to 7.  
  5.16  The proceeds of the bonds, except accrued interest and any 
  5.17  premium received on the sale of the bonds, must be credited to a 
  5.18  bond proceeds account. 
  5.19     <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective July 1, 2002.