                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

PUBLIC SCHOOL SECURITY EQUIPMENT GRANT ACT OF 2013 (§ 22.1-280.2:2)

A. This section shall be known and may be cited as the &#8220;Public School
Security Equipment Grant Act of 2013.&#8221;

B. For purposes of this section:
			&#8220;Authority&#8221; means the Virginia Public School
Authority.			&#8220;Eligible school division&#8221; means a (i) local school
division or (ii) regional vocational center, special education center,
alternative education center, or academic year Governor&#8217;s School serving
public school students in grades K through 12. &#8220;Eligible school
division&#8221; includes the Virginia School for the Deaf and the
Blind.			&#8220;Local school division&#8221; means a school division with
schools subject to state accreditation and whose students are required to be
reported in fall membership for grades K through 12.			&#8220;Security
equipment&#8221; includes building modifications and fixtures, including
security vestibules, vaping detectors, security-related devices located outside
of the school building on school property, and security-related devices located
on school buses.

C. The Authority shall issue bonds for the purpose of grant payments to eligible
school divisions of the Commonwealth to be used exclusively for purchasing
security equipment for schools, including any related installation, that is
designed to improve and help ensure the safety of students attending public
schools in the Commonwealth. Such grants shall not be used to pay for security
equipment that is not included or described in a grant application approved by
the Department pursuant to subsection D. The amount of grants provided to each
eligible school division pursuant to this section shall not exceed $100,000 for
each fiscal year of the Commonwealth. Funds for the payment of such grants shall
be provided from the issuance of bonds by the Authority, provided that the
Authority shall not issue more than an aggregate of $6 million in bonds, after
all costs, for such grants during each fiscal year of the Commonwealth. In
addition, the Authority shall ensure that no more than an aggregate principal
amount of $30 million in bonds issued under this section shall be outstanding at
any time. Eligible school divisions seeking a grant shall apply to the
Department, which shall be responsible for administering the grant program.
			The Authority shall work with the Department to determine the schedule for
the issuance of the bonds, which shall be based in part upon eligible school
divisions having sufficient funds to purchase such security equipment. The
payment of debt service on such bonds shall be as provided in the general
appropriation act.			Such grants shall be in addition to all other grants made
to local governments, school boards, or school divisions according to law. In
addition, such grants shall not replace or be in lieu of loans to local school
boards or interest rate subsidy payments to local school boards pursuant to
Chapter 11.1 (&#xA7; 22.1-175.1 et seq.), and the issuance of such bonds and the
payment of such grants shall not, except as herein provided, affect or otherwise
amend the provisions of such chapter as they relate to the powers and duties of
the Authority, local school boards, local governments, or any other entity.

D. Based on the criteria developed by the Department in collaboration with the
Department of Criminal Justice Services, eligible school divisions shall apply
for a grant by August 1 of each year. As a condition of receiving a grant, a
local match of 25 percent of the grant amount shall be required. The
Superintendent is authorized to reduce the local match for local school
divisions with a composite index of local ability-to-pay less than 0.2000,
including any such school division participating in a regional vocational
center, special education center, alternative education center, or academic year
Governor&#8217;s School. The Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind shall be
exempt from the match requirement.
			Grants shall be awarded by the Department on a competitive basis. As part of
the application for a grant, each eligible school division shall (i) identify
with specificity the security equipment for which grants are being sought, as
well as the estimated costs to purchase and install the security equipment, and
(ii) certify that it is the intent of the eligible school division to purchase
the security equipment within six months of approval of any grant by the
Department.			If the Department determines that a grant shall be paid to an
eligible school division under this section, it shall provide a written
certification to the chairman of the Authority directing him to make a grant
payment in a specific amount to the eligible school division. The Department,
however, shall not make such written certification until it has established that
the Authority has sufficient funds to make such grant payment. The Authority
shall only make grant payments to an eligible school division for the grants
provided under this section upon receipt of such written certification. The
Authority shall make such grant payments, and in the amounts as directed by the
Department, within 30 days of receipt of the certification.

E. The Department shall develop guidelines concerning the requirements for
applying for a grant and the administration of such grants. Such guidelines
shall not be subject to the Administrative Process Act (&#xA7; 2.2-4000 et
seq.).

F. In the event that two or more local school divisions became one local school
division, whether by consolidation of only the local school divisions or by
consolidation of the local governments, such resulting local school division
shall be eligible for grants on the basis of the same number of local school
divisions as existed prior to September 30, 2012.

G. The Authority shall take all necessary and proper steps as it is authorized
to take under law to carry out the provisions of this section.

H. The Department shall make an annual report to the General Assembly by
September 1 of each year reporting (i) the total grants paid during the
immediately prior fiscal year to each eligible school division and (ii) a
general description of the security equipment purchased by eligible school
divisions.

HISTORY: 2013, c. 608; 2019, c. 231; 2020, cc. 686, 778; 2022, c. 355.