All subsequent payments are made out of total debt service account. In 1991, the School Building Assistance Act was amended to place desegregation related projects into a separate fund. Over the last three years since desegregation projects were placed in a separate account, the state has fully funded all such approved projects. Twenty new projects are expected to be filed for FY'96 that would need to be authorized the following year. School districts that do not have a state approved desegregation plan are eligible for reimbursement on a sliding scale for all new construction and major renovation projects.
New construction receives higher priority than major renovations.
A substantial increase in annual authorization will be needed to keep pace with the growing demand for new schools. Over fifty projects are currently on the approved priority list and an additional hundred are expected to be filed soon. The existing demands on the program have already made funding of major renovation projects increasingly unrealistic. The impact of technology, new teaching styles, and the emergence of the school's role as a human service center will further challenge this system. In addition to the general SBA process, separate funds are reserved for special assistance for emergency projects.