5.
(a)This section applies only to eligible
charter schools that receive amounts distributed under IC 20-46-8-11.2
or IC 20-46-8-12.
(b)For purposes of this section, "charter board" means the
governing body of the organizer (as defined in IC 20-24-1-7) of an
eligible charter school.
(c)The operations fund may be used only to do the following:
(1)Carry out a capital projects plan under the following
conditions:
(A)The plan must include all proposed expenditures that
exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) and are for:
(ii)projects that are considered capital in nature, including
technology related projects.
(B)If a charter school wants to use money in the operations
fund during the year to pay for any items listed in clause (E)
that are considered capital in natu
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5. (a) This section applies only to eligible
charter schools that receive amounts distributed under IC 20-46-8-11.2
or IC 20-46-8-12.
(b) For purposes of this section, "charter board" means the
governing body of the organizer (as defined in IC 20-24-1-7) of an
eligible charter school.
(c) The operations fund may be used only to do the following:
(1) Carry out a capital projects plan under the following
conditions:
(A) The plan must include all proposed expenditures that
exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) and are for:
(i) capital assets; or
(ii) projects that are considered capital in nature, including
technology related projects.
(B) If a charter school wants to use money in the operations
fund during the year to pay for any items listed in clause (E)
that are considered capital in nature, the charter board must
approve a plan following a public hearing. The charter school
shall post the proposed plan or proposed amended plan on the
charter school's website before the hearing. The charter school
shall submit the proposed capital projects plan to the
department of local government finance's computer gateway at
least ten (10) days before the public hearing. The department of
local government finance shall make the proposed plan
available at least ten (10) days before the hearing, through the
department's computer gateway. If an amendment to a capital
projects plan is proposed, the charter board must declare the
nature of and need for the amendment in the plan amendment.
(C) If a charter board adopts a plan under clause (B), the charter
school must then submit the plan to the department of local
government finance for inclusion on the department's computer
gateway not later than thirty (30) days after adoption of the
plan. The department of local government finance shall
immediately make the proposed plan available through the
gateway website.
(D) This clause applies to an amendment to a plan that is
required because of an emergency that results in costs that
exceed the amount accumulated in the fund for repair,
replacement, or site acquisition that is necessitated by an
emergency. The charter board is not required to comply with
clause (C). If the charter board determines that an emergency
exists, the governing body may adopt an amendment to the
plan. An amendment to a plan is not subject to the deadline and
procedures for adoption of a plan described in this subdivision.
(E) This clause sets forth an exclusive list of the expenditures
that may be made from the operations fund under clause (B), as
set forth in the charter board's plan or amended plan. Subject to
the expenditures that are identified in the charter school's plan
or amended plan, the operations fund shall be used for the
following:
(i) Site acquisition.
(ii) Site development.
(iii) Building acquisition, construction, replacement,
renovation, remodeling, improvement, and maintenance,
including building materials and employment services.
(iv) Rental of real estate, buildings, facilities, and equipment.
(v) To repair and replace buildings and to repair and replace
building fixtures that are owned or leased by the charter
school and of a type constituting loss capable of being
covered by casualty insurance.
(vi) Purchase, lease, repair, or maintenance of equipment,
including maintenance vehicles to be used by the charter
school. However, the fund may not be used to pay for the
purchase, lease, repair, or maintenance of vehicles that are
not maintenance vehicles, or equipment to be used primarily
for interscholastic or extracurricular activities.
(vii) Service contracts for janitorial and custodial services,
maintenance services, snow and ice removal services, trash
removal services, mowing and lawn care services, pest
control services, and any other routine services normally
required in the maintenance or upkeep of charter school
facilities.
(viii) Repair, replacement, or site acquisition that is
necessitated by an emergency.
(ix) Construction, repair, replacement, remodeling, or
maintenance of a school sports facility.
(x) Utilities.
(xi) Property and casualty insurance.
(xii) Purchase, lease, upgrade, maintenance, or repair
technology that will not be allocated to student instruction
and learning, to include computer hardware, computer
software, wiring and computer networks, and communication
access systems used to connect with computer networks or
electronic gateways; services of full-time or part-time
computer maintenance employees; conducting nonrecurring
inservice technology training of school employees;
implementing the technology preparation curriculum;
participating in a program to provide educational
technologies, including computers in the homes of students
(commonly referred to as "the buddy system project") under
IC 20-20-13-6, the 4R's technology program, or any other
program under the educational technology program described
in IC 20-20-13; and obtaining any combination of equipment
or services in the preceding two (2) categories of this item.
(xiii) Services of charter school employees who perform
services considered to be a skilled trade by the United States
Department of Labor, Employment and Training
Administration. For purposes of this item, skilled trade
services do not include janitorial or comparable routine
services normally provided in the daily operation of school
facilities or equipment. Payment may be made for employee
services only if the employees perform construction of,
renovation of, remodeling of, repair of, or maintenance on the
facilities and equipment of the charter school.
(2) Pay transportation costs under the following conditions:
(A) A charter school shall use the operations fund to pay the
transportation costs attributable to transportation of school
children as specified in clause (B).
(B) Only the following costs are payable from the fund:
(i) Salaries paid to bus drivers, transportation supervisors,
mechanics and garage employees, clerks, and other
transportation related employees.
(ii) Contracted transportation services.
(iii) Wages of independent contractors.
(iv) Contracts with common carriers.
(v) Student fares.
(vi) Transportation related insurance.
(vii) Other expenses of operating the school corporation's
transportation service, including gasoline, lubricants, tires,
repairs, contracted repairs, parts, supplies, equipment, and
other related expenses.
(C) Percentages or parts of salaries of teaching personnel or
principals are not attributable to transportation. However, parts
of salaries of instructional aides who are assigned to assist with
the school transportation program are attributable to
transportation. The costs described in this clause (other than
instructional aide costs) may not be budgeted for payment or
paid from the fund.
(D) Costs for a calendar year are those costs attributable to
transportation for students during the school year ending in the
calendar year.
(3) Carry out a school bus replacement plan approved by the
charter school board under the following conditions:
(A) Before a charter school may use money in the operations
fund for replacing school buses, a resolution approving the
school bus replacement plan or amended plan must be
submitted to the department of local government finance.
(B) The department of local government finance shall prescribe
the format of the plan. A plan must apply to at least the five (5)
budget years immediately following the year the plan is adopted
and include at least an estimate for each year to which it applies
of the nature and amount of proposed expenditures from the
fund, and if the school corporation is seeking to acquire or
contract for transportation services that will provide additional
school buses or school buses with a larger seating capacity as
compared with the number and type of school buses from the
prior school year, evidence of a demand for increased
transportation services within the school corporation. However,
the evidence requirement regarding a contract for transportation
services does not apply if contracted transportation services are
not paid from the fund.
(C) If the charter school is seeking to require a contractor to
replace a school bus, evidence that the need exists for the
replacement of the school bus. This clause does not apply if
contracted transportation services are not paid from the
operations fund.
(D) Evidence that the charter school that seeks to acquire
additional school buses under this subdivision is acquiring or
contracting for the school buses only for the purposes specified
in clause (B) or for replacement purposes.
(E) If a charter school wants to use money in the operations
fund during the year to pay for school bus replacement, the
governing body must adopt a resolution approving the bus
replacement plan or amended plan. The charter school shall
post the proposed plan or proposed amended plan on the charter
school's website before the hearing. The governing body must
hold a hearing on the adoption of the plan. The charter school
shall submit the proposed school bus replacement plan or
amended plan to the department of local government finance's
computer gateway at least ten (10) days before the hearing on
the adoption of the plan. The department of local government
finance shall make the proposed plan available to taxpayers, at
least ten (10) days before the hearing, through the department's
computer gateway. If an amendment to a bus replacement plan
is being proposed, the charter school must declare the nature of
and the need for the amendment in the resolution to adopt the
amendment to the plan.
(4) Pay expenses that are allocated to overhead and operational
expenditures.
(5) Establish, maintain, and equip a public playground.