§ 21-15-116 — School district facility plans; development, review and approval; plan criteria; administrative review; collaborative committee process

(a) In accordance with rules and regulations of the
commission, long range comprehensive school building and
facility plans for each school district shall be developed by
the department in coordination with the applicable district,
which address district wide building and facility needs. The
facility plan shall identify building and facility needs aligned
with the statewide adequacy standards, actions to remediate
building and facility needs including new construction,
demolition as provided in this subsection, renovation, capital
renewal and major building and facility repair and replacement
expenditures, and any local enhancements to buildings and
facilities beyond statewide adequacy standards. The facility
plan shall include a response to each school building and
facility need identified on a building-by-building, space-by-
space basis. The plan shall also review, and to the extent
practical, identify and prioritize nonconstruction alternatives
to school building and facility needs such as building closure,
modification of school boundaries, modification of school grade
configurations and similar approaches. Demolition or use, lease
or other methods of disposition of surplus buildings and
facilities shall be incorporated as part of the district plan,
including the disposition of any existing land owned by the
district. The plan shall not include the abandonment or
demolition of any school facility or building unless there has
first been a public hearing on the issue. The plan shall also
specify identified alternative methods of building disposition,
proposed allocation of costs incurred or revenues resulting from
disposition and allocation of disposition revenues to offset any
costs paid by the department. In addition, district facility
plans shall include:
(i) Student enrollment projections for a period of
five (5) years commencing on the date as determined by the
commission of anticipated completion of project construction
using commission approved measures and techniques, including a
description of the methods used in making projections. The
commission may adjust projections computed under this paragraph
as necessary to reflect more precise analysis and evaluation of
historical, economic, social and other data impacting the
community in which the buildings are or are to be located;
(ii) A description of proposed new schools or
additions and remediations to existing schools necessary to meet
building adequacy standards, including:
(A) The grade levels and the total number of
pupils that the proposed school or school addition or
remediation is intended to serve;
(B) The year in which it is necessary to
commence operations of the proposed new school or school
addition;
(C) The timeline for the planning and
construction of the new school or school addition or
remediation.
(iii) Projections for new land required for new
schools including land purchase, acquisition and site analysis;
(iv) Appropriate cost estimates;
(v) A plan for addressing district major building and
facility repair and replacement needs as required under W.S. 21-
15-109(e) and routine maintenance needs. The routine and major
maintenance plan shall:
(A) Be designed to eliminate maintenance
backlogs, establish proactive maintenance practices and ensure
that school buildings and facilities and components, equipment
and systems of school buildings and facilities reach their full
life expectancy;
(B) Anticipate the funding of major building and
facility repair for the components, equipment and systems of
school buildings and facilities that have a life expectancy that
is less than the life expectancy of the school building or
facility of which the component, equipment or system is part;
(C) Establish requirements for maintaining
routine maintenance records for school buildings and facilities
and the components, equipment and systems of school buildings
and facilities.
(vi) An inventory of buildings and facilities to be
leased by the district during the planning period, either as
lessee or lessor, including the purpose for which the leased
buildings and facilities are to be used and if any of this
leased space will involve any district buildings or facilities
included within the statewide school facilities database
maintained by the department under W.S. 21-15-123(f)(iv);
(vii) Other information required by the department to
evaluate each district's plan.
(b) Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 93, § 2.
(c) Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 93, § 2.
(d) At least once every two (2) years, the commission
shall review and approve each plan developed by the department
under this section to ensure each plan:
(i) Complies with state adequacy standards;
(ii) Reduces building and facility needs in the most
efficient and cost effective manner in order to deliver quality
educational services;
(iii) Considers nonconstruction alternatives;
(iv) Provides facilities capable of supporting the
provision of the statewide educational program required by law
of public schools.
(e) Any school district aggrieved by a decision of the
department or the commission under this act may seek review in
accordance with the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act. In
accordance with W.S. 16-3-112, review of a decision of the
department shall be before the commission.
(f) In carrying out this act and in accordance with
policies adopted by the commission, the commission or the
department shall consult with the affected school districts and
shall provide districts the opportunity to informally review
facility plans, remedies and projects with the department or the
commission before districts pursue administrative review under
subsection (e) of this section.
(g) In expending funds appropriated by the legislature for
projects submitted by the commission under W.S. 21-15-119, and
commensurate with school district efforts undertaken in facility
planning required under subsection (a) of this section, the
state construction department shall require school district
boards of trustees to incorporate a collaborative committee
process, advisory to the board, which assists the school
district with planning district remedies for school buildings,
ranging from site selection to project planning and design. The
collaborative committee process for remedy development may
include project stakeholders comprised of students, parents,
teachers, principals, district administration, school board of
trustee members, representative legislators, at-large members of
the community and others. Although advisory to district boards,
the collaborative committee shall assist the boards with
informing the respective community and in developing
community-based input into project development.