Authorizes the DOE to request the land use commission and the counties to impose conditions on developers for contributions of land or fees for construction of public school facilities.

A BILL FOR AN ACT

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that the department of education is responsible for providing public education for all students. When the number of residential units increases in an area, there is a direct impact upon the enrollment of schools serving that area.

To the extent feasible, the department should provide educational facilities in time to mitigate the impact of residential growth. The department's only timely option is to acquire land for new school facilities or a fee-in-lieu of land from the developers of residential housing.

The purpose of this Act is to authorize the department of education to request the counties and the land use commission to impose conditions for the payment of school land and facilities contributions for the construction of public school facilities. The Act ensures equal application and standardized methods for assessing contributions for school facilities.

SECTION 2. Section 302A-101, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding six new definitions to be appropriately inserted and to read as follows:

""Contribution" means land, money, or other payments to the department.

"County" means the city and county of Honolulu, the county of Hawaii, the county of Kauai, or the county of Maui.

"Developer" means a person, corporation, organization, partnership, association, or other legal entity constructing, erecting, altering, or engaging in any development activity leading to the creation of dwelling units.

"Dwelling unit" means a room or rooms connected together, constituting an independent housekeeping unit.

"School facilities" means the facilities owned or operated by the department, or the facilities included in the department's capital budget or capital improvements plan.

"School land" means all land controlled by the department, including lands currently or previously used for school purposes and other lands that have been donated, exchanged, transferred, conveyed, or assigned to the department."

SECTION 3. Chapter 302A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"PART . SCHOOL LAND AND SCHOOL FACILITIES CONTRIBUTIONS

§302A-A School land and school facilities contributions. The department may assess, impose, and collect the school land and school facilities contributions for use in the planning, design, acquisition of land for, and construction of, state educational facilities; provided that the board shall adopt appropriate rules to effectuate the imposition and collection of the contributions.

§302A-B Applicability and exemptions. (a) This part shall apply to any developer that seeks state or county approval to develop residential lands and is required to pay a school land and facilities contribution to the department as a condition of that approval. The department shall request that the land use commission and the counties impose, as a condition of a land use approval, the requirement that the developer comply with the provisions of this part.

(b) The following shall be exempt from this part:

§302A-C Educational contribution agreement. (a) All residential developments, except as provided in section 302A-B(b)(2) and (3), that must provide a school land and school facilities contribution as a condition for receiving land use approvals from the state or counties shall be required to sign an educational contribution agreement with the department that describes how the land, money, or other contribution shall be made to the department.

(b) Upon the signing of an educational contribution agreement, the department shall notify the agency that placed the school land and facilities condition on the developer.

§302A-D Contribution rates. (a) School fair share contribution amounts shall be determined in the manner described below. Factors to be considered are:

(b) The contribution amount shall comprise of a land component and a construction component.

(c) The formula for calculating the land component contribution amount shall be as follows:

In-lieu fees shall be determined by multiplying the acreage requirement, as determined in paragraph (2), by the appraised value per acre of the project's land after subdivision and with improvements such as roads, drainage, and utilities.

(d) The formula for calculating the construction component contribution amount shall be as follows:

The construction fee is based on the cost to construct recent schools, number of students per dwelling unit, and a revenue credit reflecting additional state revenues generated by each new residential unit.

(e) Increases in the construction component contribution amounts shall only be generated by the updating of cost factors in the formula described in subsection (d).

§302A-E Accounting and expenditures. (a) Cash contributions shall be deposited into a department trust account identified by the name of the residential development. Each trust account shall be designated by school complex and shall be expended only to benefit schools in that complex. Spending from the trust account shall require an appropriation from the legislature.

(b) Land contributions shall be made to the department in the manner outlined in an educational contribution agreement. The agreement shall specify the condition of the land when it is to be turned over to the department.

(c) Other contributions acceptable to the department shall be made to the department in the manner specified by an educational contribution agreement.

§302A-F Use of school land and school facilities contributions. (a) All contributions shall be used for the costs of school land and school capital improvements, including but not limited to planning, engineering, architectural design, permitting, financing, administrative expenses, and any other capital equipment expenses pertaining to educational facilities.

(b) All land contributed to and purchased by the department for schools shall be considered school land and may be sold or leased by the department with the department retaining the proceeds."

SECTION 4. In codifying the new sections added by section 3 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this Act.

SECTION 5. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2005.