S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   10156
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              March 20, 2018
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. BARRETT -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Education
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to  approvals,  modifica-
   tions  and  rejections  of smart schools investment plans by the smart
   schools review board
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1.  Subparagraphs 2 and 3 of paragraph b of subdivision 16 of
 section 3641 of the education law, subparagraph 2 as added by section  2
 of  part  C  of  chapter  56  of  the laws of 2014 and subparagraph 3 as
 amended by section 3 of part YYY of chapter 59 of the laws of 2017,  are
 amended to read as follows:
   (2)  No  school  district  shall  be entitled to a smart schools grant
 until such district shall have submitted a smart schools investment plan
 to the smart schools review board and received such board's approval  of
 such  investment  plan.   THE SMART SCHOOLS REVIEW BOARD SHALL MEET ON A
 MONTHLY BASIS FOR PURPOSES OF APPROVING SUCH PLANS AND PROVIDING UPDATES
 ON PENDING APPLICATIONS. In  developing  such  investment  plan,  school
 districts  shall  consult  with  parents,  teachers, students, community
 members and other stakeholders.
   (3) The smart schools review board  shall  review  all  smart  schools
 investment  plans for compliance with all eligibility criteria and other
 requirements set forth in the guidelines. The smart schools review board
 may approve or reject such plans, or may return such plans to the school
 district for modifications; provided that notwithstanding any inconsist-
 ent provision of law, the smart schools review board  shall  approve  no
 such plan first submitted to the department on or after April fifteenth,
 two thousand seventeen, unless such plan calculates the amount of class-
 room  technology  to  be  loaned to students attending nonpublic schools
 pursuant to section seven hundred fifty-five of this chapter in a manner
 that includes the amount budgeted by the school  district  for  servers,
 wireless  access  points  and  other portable connectivity devices to be
 acquired as part of a school connectivity  project;  PROVIDED,  FURTHER,
 THAT  IF  A  PLAN  IS  REJECTED OR MODIFICATIONS ARE SOUGHT, SUCH SCHOOL
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14935-02-8

 A. 10156                            2
 
 DISTRICT SHALL BE NOTIFIED WITHIN SEVEN DAYS OF THE INITIAL  SUBMISSION.
 Upon  approval,  the  smart schools project or projects described in the
 investment plan shall be eligible for  smart  schools  grants.  A  smart
 schools project included in a school district's smart schools investment
 plan  shall  not require separate approval of the commissioner unless it
 is part of a school construction project required to  be  submitted  for
 approval  of  the commissioner pursuant to section four hundred eight of
 this chapter and/or subdivision six of section thirty-six hundred two of
 this article. Any department, agency or public authority  shall  provide
 the  smart  schools  review  board  with  any information it requires to
 fulfill its duties pursuant to this  subdivision.  THE  DEPARTMENT,  THE
 DIVISION OF THE BUDGET AND THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK SHALL DEVEL-
 OP A PROCESS FOR NOTIFYING DISTRICTS OF THE STATUS OF A PENDING APPLICA-
 TION AND SHALL DEVELOP A PROCESS FOR RESPONDING TO INQUIRIES ABOUT PEND-
 ING  APPLICATIONS  IN  A  TIME CERTAIN, BUT UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL
 SUCH RESPONSE EXCEED SEVEN DAYS.
   § 2. Subparagraph 2 of paragraph c of subdivision 16 of  section  3641
 of  the  education law, as added by section 2 of part C of chapter 56 of
 the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows:
   (2) The amounts determined pursuant to this subdivision to be paid  to
 school  districts  shall  be certified by the commissioner in accordance
 with this subdivision. If, upon the option of a school district, a smart
 schools investment plan directs that an amount be transferred or  subal-
 located  to  a  department,  agency,  or public authority to be spent on
 behalf of the school district, such  amounts  shall  be  transferred  or
 suballocated, consistent with such plan, upon the approval of the direc-
 tor  of  the budget. The amounts of money so certified or made available
 shall be paid by  the  comptroller  in  accordance  with  appropriations
 therefor,  provided,  however,  that  the  payment schedule set forth in
 subdivision one of this  section  shall  not  apply  to  such  payments,
 PROVIDED,  FURTHER  THAT SUCH PAYMENTS SHALL, TO THE EXTENT PRACTICABLE,
 BE PAID WITHIN THIRTY DAYS OF APPROVAL OF SUCH  PROJECTS  BY  THE  SMART
 SCHOOLS  REVIEW  BOARD. Such payment shall fulfill any obligation of the
 state or the commissioner to apportion funds pursuant to  this  subdivi-
 sion,  and  whenever  a  school district has been apportioned more money
 pursuant to this subdivision than that to  which  it  is  entitled,  the
 commissioner  may  deduct  such amount from the next apportionment to be
 made to such school district.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.