SB 719 - This act modifies the school purchase laws. This act prohibits any elected official, appointed official, or employee of any school district from performing a service, or selling, renting, or leasing any property to the school district for more than five hundred dollars per transaction or for five thousand dollars of value annually to him or her, to his or her spouse, or to a dependent child in his or her custody, or to any business with which he or she is associated, unless the transaction is made after public notice, competitive bidding, and the lowest bid or offer is accepted.
Current law provides that any school board member, officer, or employee of a seven-director school district that is located in a first class county who sells or provides certain commodities to the district is guilty of a class A misdemeanor and must forfeit his or her position with the district. This act removes this prohibition and aligns seven-director districts located in a first class county with the current law regarding seven-director districts located in second, third, and fourth class counties so that any school board member, officer, or employee may sell or provide certain commodities to the district provided he or she complies with certain ethical provisions.
These provisions are identical to HB 1249 (2014) and are similar to HB 1128 (2014), SB 242 (2013), HB 352 (2013), and HB 860 (2013). (Sections 105.454 & 171.181)
LEASES AND AGREEMENTS: This act modifies a prohibition on school boards leasing or renting buildings while a school building is unoccupied so that a school board may lease a building as provided in section 177.088 when a school building is unoccupied.
Currently, the board of any educational institution may only enter into an agreement with a not-for-profit corporation when making certain transactions or modifications involving sites, buildings, facilities, furnishings, and equipment. This act removes the limitation on contracts being entered into only with non-for-profit corporations for such purposes.
This act also repeals a provision allowing a board to refinance a lease purchase agreement under certain circumstances.
These provisions are identical to SB 989 (2014), HCS/HB 783 (2013), provisions contained in CCS/HCS/SCS/SBs 493, 485, 495, 516, 534, 545, 595, 616 & 624 (2014) and are similar to SB 474 (2013). (Sections 177.011 & 177.088)
MICHAEL RUFF