Rhode Island Code of Regulations › Title 200 - Board of Education › Chapter 20 - Council on Elementary and Secondary Education › Subchapter 05 - General and School Operations › Part 4 - Rhode Island School Construction Regulations › Section 200-RICR-20-05-4.4 - Project Categories and Priorities

Current through June 14, 2024
In order to ensure effective planning, management, and
					 financial sustainability of an approved project, the following general
					 requirements and standards shall be met in the application for project
					 approval.
4.4.1
General
				  Requirements
A. General requirements
				  are as follows:
1. Districts must ensure that
				  construction will be completed in a timely, cost-effective manner and that
				  buildings will be occupied within the timelines established during the approval
				  process. The approval of a project by the Council and/or the payment of
				  reimbursements by the Council shall not render the Council responsible or
				  liable for the project, or any aspect thereof, except to ensure that the
				  project is in compliance with these regulations. Districts have sole and
				  exclusive responsibility for all aspects of a proposed and/or approved project,
				  from its inception, including engaging all necessary and appropriate personnel
				  for design, construction, and oversight, including a Commissioning Agent as set
				  forth in §4.10.2 of this Part
2. Approved projects must have a useful life
				  of fifty (50) years for new construction or an addition to an existing school
				  building.
3. Districts are required
				  to have current capital improvement plans on file at RIDE. Only projects
				  included in the capital improvement plan will be eligible for
				  approval.
4. A project that results
				  from lack of maintenance or negligence by the District will not be
				  approved.
5. A District is not
				  eligible to be reimbursed for temporary housing costs incurred because adequate
				  project planning was not performed or local approvals were not obtained in a
				  timely manner.
6. Projects shall be
				  designed to minimize vandalism, and materials and finishes shall be selected to
				  minimize vandalism.
7. Projects
				  shall provide for equality of educational opportunity without discrimination on
				  account of sex, race, color, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, or
				  handicap, and all approved projects shall meet the requirements of the Rhode
				  Island Building Code, R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 23-27.3. All projects shall comply
				  with the Americans with Disabilities Act,
				   42 U.S.C.A. §
													12101  et seq. and all other applicable
				  provisions of federal, state, and local laws relative to the accessibility of
				  programs and facilities to persons with disabilities.
8. Districts shall demonstrate that projects
				  have undergone review in accordance with applicable state law and regulations
				  and, to the extent applicable to the project, by the Rhode Island's State
				  Building Commissioner, Department of Administration, Department of Health,
				  Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission, Commission for Human Rights,
				  Department of Environmental Management, Governor's Commission on Disabilities,
				  and any other department or agency of the state required by law to review such
				  projects.
9. Projects shall have
				  undergone review in accordance with applicable local or District charters,
				  by-laws, ordinances, or regulations, including local conservation, fire
				  prevention, water, sewer, or building code requirements.
10. Districts shall demonstrate that they
				  have identified educational collaborative programs in the school District not
				  currently housed in public school facilities, and have reviewed any such
				  programs to determine if students in such programs can be served more
				  efficiently and effectively if the project is approved, assuming the project is
				  for school use only.
11. Districts
				  must submit an analysis of the impact on the operating budget of implementing
				  the project in such detail and in the format required by the Council. The
				  analysis shall include an estimate of the costs of additional maintenance
				  required of the District, the costs of additional instructional or support
				  staff, additional utility costs, the costs of additional transportation, if
				  any, and the estimated revenue, if any, from the sale or lease of any school
				  facility decommissioned as a result of implementing the project.
12. Districts must provide an analysis of the
				  potential economic and non-economic impact of leveraging cross- District school
				  capacity and demonstrate that the applicant has considered existing District
				  boundaries, facilities, and populations and the operating cost impact in
				  determining the need and siting of proposed projects.
13. Districts shall ensure that all contracts
				  and subcontracts are complied with and are in conformity with all applicable
				  provisions of federal, state, and local laws and regulations.
14. Districts shall submit an analysis of
				  life cycle costs of all projects including initial capital costs, maintenance
				  costs, and utility costs and demonstrate how such costs will be reduced over
				  the life of the building and its systems. Districts shall consider life cycle
				  costs estimates of all feasible energy systems and technologies, including
				  renewable systems, to identify the system with the lowest life cycle cost
				  estimate.