As Introduced

130th General Assembly
Regular Session
2013-2014
H. B. No. 342


Representatives Brenner, Driehaus 



A BILL
To amend Section 263.325 of Am. Sub. H.B. 59 of the 1
130th General Assembly to permit an educational 2
service center to be a partner or the lead 3
applicant of an education consortia seeking a 4
grant under the Straight A Program and to modify 5
the goals of projects supported by the program. 6


BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

       Section 1. That Section 263.325 of Am. Sub. H.B. 59 of the 7
130th General Assembly be amended to read as follows:8

       Sec. 263.325. (A) The Straight A Program is hereby created 9
for fiscal years 2014 and 2015 to provide grants to city, local, 10
exempted village, and joint vocational school districts, 11
educational service centers, community schools established under 12
Chapter 3314., STEM schools established under Chapter 3326., 13
college-preparatory boarding schools established under Chapter 14
3328. of the Revised Code, individual school buildings, education 15
consortia (which may represent a partnership among school 16
districts, school buildings, community schools, or STEM schools, 17
or educational service centers), institutions of higher education, 18
and private entities partnering with one or more of the 19
educational entities identified in this division for projects that 20
aim to achieve significant advancement in one or more of the 21
following goals:22

       (1) StudentIncreased student achievement or, in the case of 23
an educational service center, increased student achievement in 24
the educational service center's client school districts;25

       (2) Spending reduction in the five-year fiscal forecast 26
required under section 5705.391 of the Revised Code or positive 27
performance on other fiscal measures established by the governing 28
board created under division (B)(1) of this section;29

       (3) Utilization of a greater share of resources in the 30
classroomclassrooms operated by the educational entity or by an 31
educational service center's client school districts;32

       (4) Use of a shared services delivery model that demonstrates 33
increased efficiency and effectiveness, long-term sustainability, 34
and scalability.35

       (B)(1) Grants shall be awarded by a nine-member governing 36
board consisting of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, or 37
the Superintendent's designee, four members appointed by the 38
Governor, two members appointed by the Speaker of the House of 39
Representatives, and two members appointed by the President of the 40
Senate. The Department of Education shall provide administrative 41
support to the board. No member shall be compensated for the 42
member's service on the board.43

       (2) The board shall select grant advisors with fiscal 44
expertise and education expertise. These advisors shall evaluate 45
proposals from grant applicants and advise the staff administering 46
the program. No advisor shall be compensated for this service.47

       (3) The board shall issue an annual report to the Governor, 48
the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President of the 49
Senate, and the chairpersons of the House and Senate committees 50
that primarily deal with education regarding the types of grants 51
awarded, the grant recipients, and the effectiveness of the grant 52
program.53

       (4) The board shall create a grant application and publish on 54
the Department's web site the application and timeline for the 55
submission, review, notification, and awarding of grant proposals.56

        (5) With the approval of the board, the Department shall 57
establish a system for evaluating and scoring the grant 58
applications received under this section. 59

       (C) Each grant applicant shall submit a proposal that 60
includes all of the following:61

       (1) A description of the project for which the applicant is 62
seeking a grant, including a description of how the project will 63
have substantial value and lasting impact;64

       (2) An explanation of how the project will be 65
self-sustaining. If the project will result in increased ongoing 66
spending, the applicant shall show how the spending will be offset 67
by verifiable, credible, permanent spending reductions.68

       (3) A description of quantifiable results of the project that 69
can be benchmarked.70

       If an education consortia described in division (A) of this 71
section applies for a grant, the lead applicant shall be the 72
school district, school building, community school, or STEM 73
school, or educational service center that is a member of the 74
consortia and shall so indicate on the grant application.75

       (D)(1) Within seventy-five days after receiving a grant 76
application, the board shall issue a decision on the application 77
of "yes," "no," "hold," or "edit." In making its decision, the 78
board shall consider whether the project has the capability of 79
being replicated in other school districts and schools or creates 80
something that can be used in other districts and schools. A grant 81
awarded under this section to a school district, educational 82
service center, community school, STEM school, college-preparatory 83
boarding school, individual school building, institution of higher 84
education, or private entity partnering with one or more of the 85
educational entities identified in division (A) of this section 86
shall not exceed $5,000,000 in each fiscal year. A grant awarded 87
to an education consortia shall not exceed $15,000,000 in each 88
fiscal year. The Superintendent of Public Instruction may make 89
recommendations to the Controlling Board that these maximum 90
amounts be exceeded. Upon Controlling Board approval, grants may 91
be awarded in excess of these amounts.92

       (2) If the board issues a "hold" or "edit" decision for an 93
application, it shall, upon returning the application to the 94
applicant, specify the process for reconsideration of the 95
application. An applicant may work with the grant advisors and 96
staff to modify or improve a grant application.97

       (E) Upon deciding to award a grant to an applicant, the board 98
shall enter into a grant agreement with the applicant that 99
includes all of the following:100

       (1) The content of the applicant's proposal as outlined under 101
division (C) of this section;102

       (2) The project's deliverables and a timetable for their 103
completion;104

       (3) Conditions for receiving grant funding;105

       (4) Conditions for receiving funding in future years if the 106
contract is a multi-year contract;107

       (5) A provision specifying that funding will be returned to 108
the board if the applicant fails to implement the agreement, as 109
determined by the Auditor of State.110

       (6) A provision specifying that the agreement may be amended 111
by mutual agreement between the board and the applicant.112

       (F) An advisory committee for the Straight A Program is 113
hereby established. The committee shall consist of not more than 114
eleven members appointed by the Governor that represent all areas 115
of the state and different interests. The committee shall annually 116
review the Straight A Program and provide strategic advice to the 117
governing board and the Director of the Governor's Office of 21st 118
Century Education.119

        (G) Each grant awarded under this section shall be subject to 120
approval by the Controlling Board prior to execution of the grant 121
agreement.122

       (H) As used in this section, "client school district" has the 123
same meaning as in section 3311.0510 of the Revised Code.124

       Section 2. That existing Section 263.325 of Am. Sub. H.B. 59 125
of the 130th General Assembly is hereby repealed.126