| (27) School district--The board of trustees of an independent
school district or its designated representative, as permitted.
(28) School facility--Any instructional facility, specialized
instructional facility, non-instructional assembly facility, non-instructional
facility, or any other facility owned or operated by a school district.
(29) School level--
(A) elementary school level--an instructional facility
or specialized instructional facility that includes some or all grades
from prekindergarten through Grade 5 or Grade 6;
(B) middle school level--an instructional facility
or specialized instructional facility that includes some or all grades
from Grade 6 through Grade 8 or Grade 9, or only includes Grade 6;
(C) high school level--an instructional facility or
specialized instructional facility that includes some or all grades
from Grade 9 or Grade 10 through Grade 12, or only includes Grade
9; and
(D) secondary level--an instructional facility or specialized
instructional facility that includes some or all grades from Grade
6 through Grade 12.
(30) Secondary entrance--Any exterior door that is
not one of the following:
(A) a primary entrance; or
(B) a door that is not operable from the exterior and
is designed to allow only for emergency egress.
(31) Specialized instructional facility--An instructional
facility with a specialized educational purpose such as agricultural
barns.
(32) Square feet per room--The net square footage of
a space, including exposed storage space such as cabinets or shelving,
but not including hallway space, classroom door alcoves, or storage
space such as closets or preparation offices. The net square footage
of a room shall be measured from the inside surfaces of the room's
walls.
(33) Square feet per student--The net square footage
of a room divided by the maximum number of students to be housed in
that room during any period of time during school hours.
(34) Third-party code compliance officer--A person
who a school district has contracted with and designated to have all
of the duties and powers of a building official, as defined by required
construction codes, to the extent allowable by state law, to enforce
compliance of any required construction code provision that is not
enforced by a state or local authority having jurisdiction.
(b) Applicability.
(1) The school facilities standards established in
this section shall apply to all school district capital improvement
projects as follows, regardless of the type of school facility or
the type of construction delivery method used by the district.
(A) A school district capital improvement project of
any type or size relating to a school facility subject to this section
must comply with applicable requirements established in subsections
(d), (e), (f), (j), and (k) of this section.
(B) A project for new construction or major renovation
at an instructional facility must comply with the requirements established
in subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (j), and (k) of this section and
one of the methods required to demonstrate compliance with minimum
space requirements established in subsections (h) and (i) of this
section.
(C) A project for minor renovation at an instructional
facility must comply with applicable requirements established in subsections
(d)(1), (e), (f), (j), and (k) of this section.
(D) A project for new construction, major renovation,
or minor renovation at a specialized instructional facility, non-instructional
facility, or non-instructional specialized assembly facility must
comply with applicable requirements established in subsections (d)(1),
(e), (f), (j), and (k) of this section.
(E) A project for major renovation that includes minor
scopes of work in an area of a school facility that is separate and
distinct from the project scope of the major renovation may be performed
as a part of a construction services contract for the major renovation
without the minor scope of work becoming subject to the standards
in subsections (g), (h), or (i) of this section if:
(i) the minor scopes of work would not, on a stand-alone
basis, be considered a major renovation project; and
(ii) the cost of the minor scopes of work is included
in the total cost of the project construction budget to determine
the appropriate scope of work to be included in the project, as specified
in subsection (k)(1)(B) of this section.
(2) A capital improvement project for an instructional
facility of an open-enrollment charter school is subject to subsection
(k) of this section and all applicable laws for an open-enrollment
charter school facility but is not subject to subsections (c)-(j)
of this section.
(c) Implementation.
(1) The school facilities standards established in
this section shall apply to a capital improvement project for which
at least one of the following has occurred on or after November 1,
2021:
(A) a board of trustees adopts a fiscal year maintenance
and operations budget where a capital improvement project title and
a design or design and construction budget are delineated;
(B) a board of trustees calls a bond election where
one or more capital improvement project titles and design or design
and construction budgets are delineated; or
(C) a new contract or amendment to an existing contract
for architectural services for new construction or a major renovation
project or a contract for engineering services for a major renovation
or minor renovation has been agreed to and signed and dated by both
parties to the agreement.
(2) A school district board of trustees may elect to
treat a capital improvement project, for which an action listed in
paragraph (1) of this subsection was taken prior to November 1, 2021,
under standards established in §61.1036 of this title (relating
to School Facilities Standards for Construction before November 1,
2021) or under the standards established in this section. If an election
to comply with this section is made by a board of trustees, the school
district and architect may mutually agree that the contract for design
services may be adjusted and then must signify in writing that the
project will become subject to the facilities standards established
in this section through an affirmative indication on the required
certification form for the project or through some other written document
or addendum to the contract signifying election under this section
and any modifications to the contract terms agreed to by the parties.
(3) If a school district board of trustees makes an
election to comply with §61.1036 of this title under paragraph
(2) of this subsection, it may still elect to comply with subsection
(k) of this section.
(4) A school district shall consider implementing the
safety and security standards under subsection (k) of this section
for any safety and security upgrades to an existing instructional
facility that does not require compliance with this section.
(d) Educational adequacy.
(1) Long-range facility plan. A school district shall
ensure that a capital improvement project subject to this section
complies with the requirements and standards as follows.
(A) Elements. The long-range facility plan shall include
all of the following elements that apply to the facility and project
and must also be updated prior to commencement of construction to
include the access control document required in subsection (k)(1)(B)
of this section:
(i) existing and proposed instructional programs at
the project campus, including special education, dual language, course
offerings, and partnerships;
(ii) the age and condition of all buildings and systems
at the project campus;
(iii) history of completed capital improvement projects
at the facility;
(iv) site evaluation of the project campus, including,
but not limited to, overall site; shape; useable land; suitability
for intended use as well as planned improvements; adequate vehicular,
pedestrian, and emergency access; queueing; parking; and site amenities;
(v) the school district's educational specifications;
(vi) the school district's enrollment projections,
maximum student enrollment of the facility, and the facility's maximum
instructional capacity, if applicable; and
(vii) the noncompliance, partial compliance, or full
compliance with each of the safety and security standards required
in subsection (k) of this section.
(B) Process. The process of developing the long-range
facility plan shall consider input from teachers, students, parents,
taxpayers, and other school district stakeholders.
Cont'd... |
