[0:29] going to call the

[14:59] Commission on School

[15:10] vice chair. And then

[15:11] we'll get to, I think,

[15:12] a round of

[15:13] introductions after

[15:14] the election. And so

[15:17] with that, is there a

[15:18] motion for the chair?

[15:30] >> All right. Is

[15:31] there a motion and a

[15:33] second. Any further

[15:35] nominations and all

[15:50] And I've done my part

[15:51] today. Thank you.

[15:53] >> Thank you, Mr.

[15:54] Chair. I appreciate

[15:55] it. Now we are going

[15:57] to. The floor is open

[15:58] for nominations for

[16:10] Although it's a

[16:11] little different.

[16:12] That has a a non

[16:15] senator. But I think

[16:16] the Senate did so

[16:17] much work on this

[16:18] over the last four

[16:30] attendance. So

[16:31] appreciate that

[16:32] Senator. So there's a

[16:34] motion with a second

[16:35] to elect Delegate

[16:39] Simons as the vice

[16:39] chair. All those in

[16:50] left to right and

[16:51] then down front for

[16:53] introduction. So

[16:54] we'll start with

[16:55] delegate commerce.

[16:55] Fowler.

[16:57] >> Thank you, Mr.

[16:58] Chair. I'm Delegate

[17:10] Herring. I represent

[17:11] the fourth House

[17:13] district, which is

[17:13] West Alexandria City

[17:14] in the Bailey's

[17:15] Crossroads of area of

[17:18] Fairfax County. I

[17:19] also serve as the

[17:30] Beach and eastern

[17:31] Norfolk.

[17:32] >> I'm Jeremy McPike,

[17:34] representing the 29th

[17:35] Senate District,

[17:36] Quantico, Dale city,

[17:39] Dumfries. Nokesville.

[17:49] Newport News.

[17:51] >> Good afternoon.

[17:52] Delegate Chris Runyon

[17:53] and I represent

[17:54] Highland and Bath,

[17:55] the two of the

[17:56] smallest school

[17:57] districts in the

[17:59] Commonwealth, as well

[18:08] >> Mr. Robertson.

[18:11] >> Mr. Robertson.

[18:13] >> Mr. Robertson, can

[18:14] you please use the

[18:16] mic button on the

[18:17] right side? Gray.

[18:29] retired as chair and

[18:31] president of Moseley

[18:32] Architects, and now

[18:34] I'm a senior advisor

[18:35] with McGuire Woods

[18:37] Consulting and the

[18:38] chair of the Virginia

[18:50] is Banshee and I'm

[18:51] the director of

[18:52] Department of General

[18:53] Services.

[18:58] >> Thank you, Mr.

[18:59] Chair. Christina Bird,

[18:59] chief operations

[19:10] I'm the state

[19:11] treasurer. I've been

[19:12] serving in that

[19:13] capacity since 2022.

[19:14] Before that, I was a

[19:15] partner at McGuire

[19:16] Woods Law Firm. So

[19:17] there's a theme here.

[19:29] D young. I'm on a

[19:32] planning commission

[19:32] in Caroline County

[19:33] for the district, as

[19:34] well as the chairman

[19:36] for the Vdot

[19:37] Committee in Caroline.

[19:50] next we are moving to

[19:52] bullet two, where the

[19:53] adoption of

[19:55] electronic meeting

[19:55] policy. And I'll turn

[19:56] it over to Attorney

[20:10] the Commission. The

[20:12] last time this

[20:13] Commission met, it

[20:15] operated under an

[20:17] electronic meeting

[20:18] policy. So I have a

[20:19] copy of that same

[20:29] point during this

[20:31] interim, or an

[20:33] individual would like

[20:34] to participate

[20:35] virtually, that you

[20:37] have a written policy

[20:38] on file. So again,

[20:50] policy. But if you do

[20:51] want to permit

[20:54] virtual participation

[20:55] either as a whole or

[20:57] individually, you

[20:58] would need to adopt a

[21:10] current policy?

[21:13] Seeing none, we are

[21:15] going to vote to

[21:16] accept the current

[21:17] policy.

[21:17] >> Move to adopt the

[21:18] policy. Second.

[21:19] >> There's been a

[21:29] adopted by roll call.

[21:32] >> Roll call, vote in

[21:34] clerk to open roll.

[21:36] >> Sure. Delegate

[21:37] Simons. Yes. Delegate.

[21:40] Askew.

[21:40] >> Yes.

[21:49] McPike. Yes. Senator.

[21:51] Fevola. Let's see.

[21:53] Doctor Robertson.

[21:54] >> Yes.

[21:56] >> Doctor. Cotton.

[21:57] Mr. Young.

[22:10] >> Miss. Gandhi. Yes.

[22:12] And Mr. Crumlish.

[22:14] >> Yes.

[22:16] >> It's unanimous,

[22:17] Mr. Chair.

[22:30] history of the

[22:31] Commission.

[22:33] >> Yeah, thank you,

[22:34] Mr. Chairman. Members

[22:35] of the commission

[22:36] thought it would be a

[22:37] good idea again,

[22:38] since you all haven't

[22:48] in its history. So

[22:51] first, Mr. Chairman,

[22:53] quickly, you have

[22:54] eight statutory

[22:55] duties. First, five

[22:56] have have existed

[22:57] since inception.

[23:10] modernization and

[23:11] construction,

[23:12] creating standardized

[23:13] construction designs

[23:14] and procurement

[23:15] practices, and

[23:17] identifying potential

[23:18] cost saving measures

[23:19] that school divisions

[23:30] tasked with updating

[23:32] annually the

[23:33] statewide needs

[23:33] assessment and

[23:35] developing and

[23:35] delivering a ten year

[23:36] capital roadmap,

[23:38] taking into

[23:39] consideration

[23:50] space now, by

[23:51] collaborating with

[23:52] the early childhood

[23:53] ready regions and the

[23:55] community colleges in

[23:55] the Commonwealth to

[23:58] look at facility

[24:10] not currently being

[24:12] utilized. And finally,

[24:14] you're you're

[24:14] required to submit an

[24:16] annual report. So the

[24:18] executive and

[24:19] legislature knows

[24:30] six year charter in

[24:32] 2020, just this past

[24:34] year, again per year

[24:35] bill. Mr. chairman,

[24:36] that expiration date

[24:37] was removed. So this

[24:39] commission is now a

[24:50] primarily on

[24:52] understanding the

[24:53] history of school

[24:54] construction funding,

[24:55] what the current

[24:56] resources are for

[24:59] constructing and

[25:10] The commission

[25:13] received input,

[25:14] guidance and data

[25:15] from various partners,

[25:18] including school

[25:18] boards, local

[25:30] and the Board and

[25:31] Department of

[25:32] Education. So I've

[25:36] included a bunch of

[25:37] reading material for

[25:38] you in your in your

[25:49] over that two year

[25:51] period. Also in your

[25:54] folders. And one

[25:55] thing I particularly

[25:57] recommend that you

[26:10] information in there

[26:11] that that, that

[26:12] publication was, was

[26:15] key in this

[26:16] commission's work and

[26:18] recommendations and

[26:18] those two interims

[26:29] over 50 years old at

[26:31] that time, according

[26:33] to a school board

[26:34] survey that they

[26:35] conducted, would be

[26:37] approximately $24.8

[26:50] action in the ensuing

[26:52] legislative sessions,

[26:53] both legislative and

[26:56] budgetary. So I'm

[26:57] just going to run

[26:58] through those

[27:10] recommended. And the

[27:11] General Assembly

[27:13] passed a law that

[27:14] made several changes

[27:15] to the Literary Fund

[27:17] loan process for to

[27:19] use to construct or

[27:30] excuse me, open

[27:31] application process,

[27:32] an increased the

[27:34] maximum loan amount

[27:35] from 7.5 to 25

[27:38] million. It also

[27:50] small school

[27:51] divisions, to cap

[27:53] those at 2% and then

[27:55] indexed interest

[27:56] rates to a market

[27:57] rate as well. And

[27:59] finally, it permitted

[28:10] recommended, and the

[28:12] General Assembly

[28:13] passed a law to

[28:15] establish the School

[28:16] Construction

[28:16] Assistance Program

[28:17] and fund the purpose

[28:19] purpose of which is

[28:29] school buildings. And

[28:33] that same bill also

[28:34] required any revenues

[28:36] remaining in the

[28:37] Casino Gaming

[28:39] Proceeds Fund. After

[28:50] in assistance to to

[28:52] school boards for

[28:55] school construction.

[29:10] school boards. This

[29:12] requires dough and

[29:14] consultation with DGS

[29:16] and using DGS

[29:18] existing Mr. Fix tool

[29:19] as a template to

[29:29] school division, and

[29:31] the amount of

[29:32] maintenance reserve

[29:32] funds that are

[29:33] necessary to restore

[29:36] those buildings. I

[29:49] go too deep into

[29:51] those, but those were

[29:53] those were

[29:54] established in 2022.

[30:10] this would permit

[30:11] school boards, with

[30:12] the concurrence of

[30:13] the local governing

[30:14] body, to establish a

[30:17] capital reserve fund

[30:18] as a as a sort of a

[30:30] expenditures, subject

[30:31] to conditions like

[30:35] designating the

[30:36] specific project to

[30:36] be funded at the time

[30:50] finally, this past

[30:51] June as a part of the

[30:52] final budget

[30:54] negotiation process

[30:56] this summer, you now

[30:58] have a provision of

[30:59] law that this

[31:09] renovation. This, as

[31:11] you know, started

[31:12] with one school

[31:13] division. It was

[31:14] expanded to ten over

[31:16] time, and now it's an

[31:18] option for all all

[31:29] won't go into too

[31:31] much detail, but that

[31:34] was just this past

[31:36] special session that

[31:49] the General Assembly

[31:51] made some pretty

[31:52] major investments in

[31:53] school construction

[31:54] over the past three

[31:56] biennium. I included

[31:59] a one pager in your

[32:10] grants in the past

[32:11] six years and a

[32:14] little under half a

[32:15] billion in loans for

[32:17] a total investment of

[32:30] guess I'll just close

[32:32] Mister, Mister

[32:32] Chairman, by saying

[32:34] that that's a lot of

[32:36] information. But, you

[32:37] know, we now that

[32:38] this commission is

[32:50] appreciate it. Are

[32:51] there any questions

[32:52] for Mr. Brimmer in.

[32:55] Please use your.

[32:56] There's a yellow

[32:58] button on the bottom

[32:59] right underneath the

[33:10] Thank you so much.

[33:11] And we'll move ahead.

[33:15] And as Ryan stated,

[33:17] he did invite

[33:29] thank you so much.

[33:36] >> Thank you, Mr.

[33:37] Chair. Members of the

[33:38] Commission today, I

[33:40] have prepared for you

[33:50] has adopted

[33:51] initiatives for the

[33:51] Virginia Department

[33:52] of Education to

[33:53] tackle. So here are

[33:56] several projects that

[33:57] we have been working

[33:58] on. And what I will

[33:59] go through. I will

[34:10] region and where each

[34:11] school division rests

[34:12] within the

[34:13] Commonwealth and what

[34:14] region they reside in.

[34:15] There are 131 school

[34:17] divisions across the

[34:30] is a data collection

[34:31] that began in 2023.

[34:34] The Code of Virginia

[34:35] requires the Virginia

[34:35] Department of

[34:36] Education to

[34:37] collaborate with the

[34:38] Department of General

[34:39] Services and use

[34:50] allows Vdoe to have a

[34:52] central repository of

[34:54] data of state owned

[34:55] buildings and systems,

[34:57] data on the school

[34:58] buildings and school

[35:00] sites is collected

[35:10] data collection needs

[35:11] in partnership with

[35:13] DGS, as required

[35:15] through Senate Bill

[35:17] 498 and House Bill

[35:19] 554. Vdoe utilized

[35:30] required, and a full

[35:31] listing of the

[35:32] inventory, school

[35:33] buildings and

[35:33] instructional

[35:34] facilities is located

[35:36] on Vdoe website. This

[35:38] report is also

[35:39] derived from

[35:50] have that available

[35:51] for your review.

[35:53] Taking a look at that

[35:54] data, this slide

[35:56] shows the number of

[35:56] Virginia school

[35:57] buildings by type.

[36:10] 16.4% of the school

[36:11] facilities are middle

[36:12] schools, and 15.2% of

[36:15] facilities are high

[36:16] schools. The

[36:17] remaining facilities

[36:17] are academic support

[36:19] buildings such as

[36:30] More than half of all

[36:31] schools and academic

[36:32] support buildings in

[36:33] the state are greater

[36:34] than 50 years old.

[36:37] 24.2% are between 26

[36:50] provides a snapshot

[36:51] of the instructions

[36:52] that are used to

[36:53] interpret system

[36:54] replacement,

[36:55] replacement index or

[36:57] SRI data and the

[36:58] relative age are a

[37:10] system. Sri is

[37:12] expressed by a

[37:13] percentage of the

[37:13] expected life of all

[37:15] systems, building and

[37:16] site that have been

[37:18] consumed. A 100%

[37:29] systems are brand new,

[37:31] a higher value

[37:33] indicates that the

[37:34] building and sites

[37:35] are in need of system

[37:36] upgrade or

[37:37] replacement. Relative

[37:38] age is not a calendar

[37:49] index times life span

[37:51] the lifespan assumed

[37:52] is 50 years. A

[37:54] building renovation

[37:56] will decrease the

[37:57] relative age, and a

[37:58] newly constructed

[38:10] Public Schools by

[38:11] superintendents

[38:12] region. Based on the

[38:13] most recent Mr. Fix

[38:14] reporting, this chart

[38:16] provides data based

[38:17] on the building and

[38:19] site. The relative

[38:30] assumption that it

[38:31] has a useful life

[38:32] equating to 50 years.

[38:34] This demonstration is

[38:35] that 8.8 years of

[38:37] useful life remains

[38:37] for both site and

[38:39] buildings. In

[38:41] two.

[38:51] >> Before you move on

[38:52] to security. So when

[38:53] you talk about

[38:55] systems, I'm assuming

[38:56] Hvac roofs, what

[38:59] other systems would

[39:08] a city. Well, it

[39:11] could be any of those

[39:12] things. We have a

[39:13] variety.

[39:13] >> What about

[39:14] technology?

[39:15] >> No, that would not

[39:17] be generally that is

[39:29] >> So I know in my

[39:33] home school district

[39:34] of Newport News

[39:35] Public Schools, a lot

[39:36] of the 1950s

[39:38] buildings were not

[39:50] Would it also take

[39:51] into account when a

[39:53] building is just not

[39:54] well designed and it

[39:55] needs to be renovated

[39:56] so the front office

[39:57] can see the front

[39:58] door or not really.

[40:09] that would be part of

[40:11] a renovation. But we

[40:13] do have schools that

[40:14] have not gone through

[40:16] those security

[40:18] enhancements.

[40:19] >> So it would not be

[40:29] equipment grant. The

[40:33] school security

[40:34] equipment grant began

[40:34] in 2013 through the

[40:36] General Assembly

[40:37] session with the

[40:38] creation of a

[40:39] competitive grant

[40:39] program for school

[40:50] million is annually

[40:51] awarded to enhance

[40:52] security and help

[40:53] protect students,

[40:54] faculty, staff and

[40:56] visitors. Each school

[40:57] division is awarded

[40:59] the. Each school

[41:10] program. Since its

[41:11] inception in 2013,

[41:14] $126 million has been

[41:15] awarded to school

[41:16] divisions and

[41:16] regional programs.

[41:19] There are ten grant

[41:30] Total. There is a

[41:32] list of eligible

[41:33] equipment located on

[41:34] the website. In the

[41:36] current grant year,

[41:37] applications were

[41:38] received from seven

[41:39] regional centers. The

[41:50] provided to 399

[41:52] qualifying schools

[41:52] and 91 school

[41:54] divisions. This slide

[41:58] demonstrates the most

[41:59] purchased eligible

[42:10] hardware cameras, two

[42:11] way radios for staff,

[42:13] and metal or firearm

[42:15] detection systems at

[42:16] our school building

[42:17] entrances. The use of

[42:30] school busses and

[42:32] passenger tracking,

[42:33] as well as passenger

[42:34] ID card readers on

[42:36] school busses. The

[42:39] next program that I

[42:50] During the 2026

[42:52] General Assembly

[42:53] session, an

[42:53] investment of $519

[42:56] million has been made

[42:57] for 2027 and 2028.

[43:09] grants. This slide

[43:11] provides you with a

[43:11] snapshot of the

[43:12] awards that have

[43:13] occurred since the

[43:14] inception of the

[43:15] program in fiscal

[43:16] year 2022 through

[43:17] last fiscal year of

[43:30] guidelines and

[43:31] criteria that were

[43:32] approved by the Board

[43:33] of Education. Several

[43:34] of those criteria

[43:36] include local

[43:36] governing body

[43:37] commitment to a

[43:39] project, inclusion in

[43:39] the Capital

[43:49] contributes ten, 20

[43:51] or 30% of a of a

[43:52] project cost based on

[43:54] the school division's

[43:55] local composite index,

[43:57] with the local

[43:58] locality contributing

[43:59] the balance of the

[44:10] projects from 2022

[44:11] include new schools

[44:13] resulting from school

[44:15] consolidation or

[44:16] increased enrollment,

[44:17] extensive school

[44:19] renovations,

[44:30] safety and security,

[44:32] structural

[44:33] improvements. Picture

[44:36] is worth a thousand

[44:37] words to highlight a

[44:38] few of the projects

[44:39] that have been funded

[44:49] County. It is a 203

[44:53] 200,332 square foot

[44:54] school building on a

[44:55] 50 acre site, which

[44:56] has 1032 school

[44:58] student capacity. It

[45:10] small high schools

[45:11] and consolidate them

[45:12] into one school,

[45:13] providing an

[45:14] opportunity for more

[45:15] programs that support

[45:16] modern education.

[45:17] This school has a

[45:18] special CTE center

[45:30] Elementary school,

[45:31] Arnett Hill in

[45:32] Danville. It was the

[45:33] first new school in

[45:35] 35 years. It was

[45:36] built on the same

[45:37] site as the old

[45:38] school. Danville

[45:40] sixth Grade Academy

[45:50] was a project that

[45:51] added six new

[45:52] classrooms to meet

[45:53] and enhance learning

[45:54] opportunities for

[45:55] students in Dickenson

[45:56] County. One

[46:10] of Education. We were

[46:12] awarded $5 million

[46:13] through a competitive

[46:14] grant process. This

[46:16] grant ends in

[46:17] November of 2028. The

[46:30] state and local

[46:31] resources to improve

[46:31] public school

[46:32] facilities to ensure

[46:33] safe, healthy,

[46:35] sustainable and

[46:36] quality learning

[46:37] environments. High

[46:38] needs schools were

[46:39] determined through a

[46:50] to determine if a

[46:51] school can offer free

[46:52] or reduced lunch to

[46:53] students through

[46:55] Community Eligibility

[46:56] Program. Under the

[46:58] sassy grant, the

[46:59] Department of

[47:00] Education is actively

[47:10] anticipated to be

[47:11] completed in February

[47:11] of 2027. As part of

[47:14] the grant, we are

[47:15] working to develop a

[47:16] database and a

[47:17] dashboard to improve

[47:18] and provide a virtual

[47:30] address their

[47:31] facility improvement

[47:32] needs. The dashboard

[47:34] will also be an

[47:34] effective tool for

[47:35] the Department of

[47:36] Education in

[47:37] documenting school

[47:37] building conditions

[47:38] across the

[47:49] with completed

[47:51] assessments, and the

[47:52] red asterisks

[47:53] indicate the division

[47:54] with one of two

[47:55] completed assessments

[47:56] so far in the process.

[48:08] of 2027. All sassy

[48:12] assessment data will

[48:13] be collected in the

[48:14] dashboard. Divisions

[48:15] will have access to

[48:16] the updated

[48:17] information and be

[48:18] able to complete

[48:30] included. This will

[48:31] allow the dashboard

[48:32] to become a

[48:33] repository for all

[48:34] school facility data

[48:36] and school fidelity

[48:37] facility conditions

[48:49] the Commission in

[48:52] 2024, the state

[48:53] budget included $18.5

[48:55] million through a

[48:56] combination of state

[48:57] and federal funds to

[48:58] provide one time

[48:59] grant funding to

[49:10] there is 3.95 million

[49:13] in unclaimed

[49:14] reimbursements from

[49:14] this grant award, and

[49:15] school divisions have

[49:16] until November 1st to

[49:17] submit their

[49:18] reimbursements. These

[49:30] training of staff.

[49:34] Also in accordance

[49:35] with the Code of

[49:36] Virginia, Vdoe

[49:37] provides guidelines

[49:38] for school divisions

[49:39] in Virginia's public

[49:50] additions. There is

[49:51] also recommendations

[49:53] governing the

[49:54] instructional,

[49:55] operational and

[49:55] health and

[49:56] maintenance needs not

[49:57] addressed in the

[49:58] Virginia Uniform

[49:59] Statewide Building

[50:08] of 2026. That

[50:11] completes my

[50:12] presentation this

[50:13] afternoon for the

[50:14] commission. I'll turn

[50:14] it back to you, Mr.

[50:15] Chair.

[50:15] >> Thank you so much,

[50:16] Miss Berta. Does

[50:17] anybody have any

[50:18] questions for the

[50:30] assessment tool. You

[50:32] know, one of our

[50:33] tasks involves

[50:36] modernization. And I

[50:37] just feel like some

[50:38] of our schools are,

[50:50] for renovations of

[50:52] front offices for,

[50:54] for line of sight or

[50:57] learning cottages

[50:58] that might be on the

[50:59] property that really,

[51:10] Delegate Simon. I

[51:11] think that is an

[51:12] opportunity for us.

[51:13] This is this is a

[51:14] great stride forward

[51:15] when I tell you we're

[51:16] collecting. Mr. fix

[51:17] sits on an Excel

[51:18] spreadsheet, and it's

[51:19] very antiquated. And

[51:30] sure my Director of

[51:31] Support Services

[51:32] hears that loud and

[51:33] clear too. And

[51:33] whatever we can do to

[51:35] make this process

[51:35] better for our school

[51:36] divisions, that's our

[51:37] ultimate goal. They

[51:38] work really hard and

[51:50] can join us back on

[51:51] the dais, but we

[51:52] appreciate your

[51:52] presentation, and

[51:54] we'll look forward to

[51:54] continuing to work

[51:55] with you on some of

[51:56] these, some important

[51:58] information data that

[51:59] you're collecting so

[51:59] we can move forward

[52:10] Josette Bulova, who

[52:11] is the policy

[52:12] communications

[52:13] coordinator for the

[52:14] Virginia Municipal

[52:14] League.

[52:30] by Josette Bulova,

[52:31] policy communications

[52:32] coordinator with the

[52:33] Virginia Municipal

[52:34] League VML. And we

[52:35] appreciate the

[52:36] opportunity to update

[52:37] the Commission on the

[52:38] local option. Voter

[52:50] commission

[52:52] recommendation back

[52:52] in 2021, and many of

[52:54] the members here have

[52:55] carried legislation

[52:56] and worked on other

[52:57] areas, and it's so

[52:58] nice to see it

[52:59] actually come to

[53:00] fruition. So we truly

[53:09] the K-12 stakeholders

[53:11] community. And again,

[53:13] we appreciate

[53:14] appreciate the

[53:14] opportunity to be

[53:15] back before this

[53:15] commission to talk

[53:16] about this and just

[53:17] like to give an

[53:18] overview of how we

[53:19] got to where we are,

[53:30] around back then,

[53:32] myself included, you

[53:33] may recall that

[53:34] Halifax County was

[53:35] the first locality

[53:36] that was granted the

[53:37] statewide authority

[53:38] by the Assembly and

[53:39] the governor, and

[53:49] of course, in 2021, a

[53:51] major turning point.

[53:52] As part of the

[53:53] commission's work, it

[53:54] evaluated and then

[53:55] recommended that this

[53:56] authority should be

[53:57] given to counties and

[53:58] cities statewide. And

[54:10] stalled or was vetoed.

[54:12] But very fortunately,

[54:13] this year, the

[54:15] legislature and

[54:16] Governor Spanberger

[54:17] enacted this idea

[54:19] through the budget

[54:29] that 47 localities

[54:31] have approved the

[54:32] resolution placing

[54:32] the referendum on

[54:33] this November 3rd

[54:35] ballot, which is for

[54:36] those who can do the

[54:37] math, more than one

[54:38] third of all counties

[54:39] and cities in the

[54:50] construction tools.

[54:52] And just an important

[54:53] distinction. The

[54:53] General Assembly

[54:54] provided this

[54:55] authority, but local

[54:56] governments must

[54:56] decide whether to

[54:57] pursue it or not. And

[54:58] then ultimately,

[54:59] voters make the

[55:00] decision about

[55:10] authority, as I was

[55:12] going to say, it's no

[55:13] longer an untested

[55:14] concept. We've seen

[55:14] it in action, and 909

[55:17] localities already

[55:17] have the referendum

[55:18] authority. And those

[55:19] are the counties of

[55:29] this issue. And every

[55:31] referendum effort has

[55:32] eventually passed.

[55:34] More importantly,

[55:35] though, what has this

[55:36] authority

[55:37] accomplished? And

[55:37] according to our data,

[55:39] in these eight

[55:40] localities, more than

[55:50] estimated project

[55:51] total. And that

[55:52] includes a you know,

[55:53] we talked about

[55:53] Halifax. It includes

[55:54] a brand new $125

[55:56] million high school

[55:56] in Halifax County.

[55:58] And I think it

[55:58] demonstrates the

[55:59] authority can

[55:59] translate into real

[56:10] as real estate tax.

[56:13] So this this map is

[56:14] from the Virginia

[56:15] Mercury. I'd like to

[56:16] give them credit, but

[56:17] I think it really

[56:18] tells the story in

[56:19] terms of the demand,

[56:29] the green is the ones

[56:31] that are currently

[56:31] seeking this

[56:32] authority this year.

[56:33] And I should just

[56:34] point out that just

[56:35] because they're

[56:35] seeking authority

[56:36] doesn't necessarily

[56:36] mean that this is an

[56:37] automatic increase in

[56:39] tax, it still needs

[56:39] to go to the voters

[56:50] this authority.

[56:53] >> Thank you, Jeremy,

[56:54] and good afternoon,

[56:55] Commission members.

[56:57] This next map

[56:58] highlights the

[56:59] individual names of

[57:09] in green. Over the

[57:11] years, when statewide

[57:11] authority was debated,

[57:13] one of the questions

[57:14] constantly asked of

[57:15] us was whether this

[57:16] was primarily an

[57:17] issue for one

[57:18] specific area of

[57:19] Virginia or the whole.

[57:30] presentations this

[57:31] morning, this map

[57:33] shows the immediate

[57:34] interest of local

[57:34] governments,

[57:35] regardless of their

[57:36] geographic location.

[57:38] So the next three

[57:39] slides will provide

[57:50] Taxation. For fiscal

[57:51] years, FY 26 through

[57:54] 2028. I just wanted

[57:55] to note that this

[57:56] sales tax does not

[57:57] include food and

[57:58] personal hygiene

[58:00] products, so keep

[58:08] revenues. If all 47

[58:13] referendum were

[58:13] approved and

[58:14] implemented, total

[58:14] estimates would be

[58:15] around 414 million in

[58:17] FY 26, 423 million in

[58:30] dollars annually.

[58:31] Although this is a

[58:32] wide range, even 1 or

[58:34] 2 million in

[58:34] recurring revenue can

[58:37] make a meaningful

[58:38] difference for local

[58:39] governments when

[58:40] determining the

[58:50] issue of this is the

[58:51] same addressing

[58:52] school capital needs.

[58:54] So this next slide

[58:55] aims to show you the

[58:57] geographic and fiscal

[58:59] diversity. Further

[59:10] western Virginia,

[59:12] Chesterfield County

[59:12] and the city of

[59:13] Richmond in central

[59:14] Virginia, Isle of

[59:15] Wight in Hampton

[59:16] Roads, Fairfax City

[59:17] in Northern Virginia,

[59:18] City of Martinsville

[59:19] and Southside, and

[59:30] million right here in

[59:31] Richmond and nearly

[59:33] 60 million in

[59:34] Chesterfield, all

[59:34] based on the FY 26

[59:36] estimates. This range

[59:38] really highlights the

[59:39] construction needs

[59:50] this particular tool

[59:52] fits, or if they need

[59:54] it for their

[59:55] particular needs. So

[59:57] next steps. You may

[59:58] be wondering where do

[59:59] we go from here? The

[1:00:10] voter approval is not

[1:00:11] the final

[1:00:12] administrative step.

[1:00:13] If a render from

[1:00:15] passes, the local

[1:00:15] governing body must

[1:00:16] then formally adopt

[1:00:17] an ordinance to

[1:00:18] actually levy the

[1:00:19] school construction

[1:00:29] Identify the date on

[1:00:31] which the tax will

[1:00:32] expire 20 years from

[1:00:34] the passing of the

[1:00:35] resolution, not the

[1:00:36] referendum. And

[1:00:37] finally, a certified

[1:00:38] copy of the ordinance

[1:00:39] must be forwarded to

[1:00:49] with the rest.

[1:00:51] >> Thank you. Josette.

[1:00:52] So just to reiterate,

[1:00:54] November is not the

[1:00:55] end of the

[1:00:55] conversation.

[1:00:56] Obviously, it's

[1:00:56] really the beginning

[1:00:57] of the next phase,

[1:00:58] and it will be

[1:00:59] important, I think,

[1:01:10] tax supported capital

[1:01:11] needs. And we would,

[1:01:12] of course, love to

[1:01:13] come back to the

[1:01:14] commission and update

[1:01:15] you after the

[1:01:17] referendum results.

[1:01:18] And then potentially,

[1:01:19] as things go forward,

[1:01:30] once, being able to

[1:01:31] do this and

[1:01:32] implementing it. And

[1:01:33] inevitably, it will

[1:01:33] identify some

[1:01:34] implementation

[1:01:35] questions, as each

[1:01:36] experience will

[1:01:37] inevitably vary

[1:01:37] community to

[1:01:38] community. So we look

[1:01:39] forward to working

[1:01:50] ultimately not in the

[1:01:51] final budget.

[1:01:52] Language was the

[1:01:53] issue of debt service.

[1:01:54] You know, the current

[1:01:56] authority, which

[1:01:56] we're very grateful

[1:01:57] of, does allow only

[1:02:10] they unfortunately

[1:02:11] had to move forward

[1:02:13] with construction

[1:02:14] projects just because

[1:02:15] the need was so great.

[1:02:17] So they dug deep into

[1:02:18] their existing

[1:02:19] revenue sources to

[1:02:29] maybe future

[1:02:31] consideration. But in

[1:02:31] closing, I just want

[1:02:32] to return to where we

[1:02:34] started and thank the

[1:02:36] Commission again for

[1:02:37] its and I don't if

[1:02:38] there are any

[1:02:39] questions I'll get to

[1:02:50] about the scale of

[1:02:51] the need that you've

[1:02:52] all identified back

[1:02:53] in 2021, and the

[1:02:54] department is doing a

[1:02:55] great job cataloging

[1:02:56] going forward, and

[1:02:57] the demand for

[1:02:58] additional local

[1:02:58] tools to help address

[1:03:10] should also like to

[1:03:11] acknowledge the

[1:03:12] General Assembly and

[1:03:13] the Department for

[1:03:14] all the work that's

[1:03:15] done through programs

[1:03:15] like the Literary

[1:03:16] Fund, the School

[1:03:17] Construction

[1:03:18] Assistance Program,

[1:03:19] the Virginia Public

[1:03:20] School Authority. As

[1:03:29] forward. And but this

[1:03:31] is a significant

[1:03:32] addition to the

[1:03:33] toolbox that

[1:03:33] preserves local

[1:03:34] decision making

[1:03:34] authority. Local

[1:03:36] governing bodies

[1:03:37] determine whether to

[1:03:37] pursue it. And then

[1:03:38] ultimately, voters

[1:03:39] make the final

[1:03:50] may have.

[1:03:51] >> Thank you so much.

[1:03:53] I'm going to take

[1:03:54] over the gavel from

[1:03:56] Chair Askew. Do we

[1:03:58] have any questions

[1:04:10] the allocation of

[1:04:12] grants as well as the

[1:04:13] new use of sales and

[1:04:15] use tax as our

[1:04:18] population cohort

[1:04:30] you know, Weldon

[1:04:31] Cooper data

[1:04:32] indicating some are

[1:04:33] up to 10% reduction

[1:04:34] in cohort size. 10%

[1:04:37] over a school system

[1:04:38] is a fairly

[1:04:38] significant chunk of

[1:04:50] around. And hopefully

[1:04:51] that Vaiko and VML

[1:04:52] and others can start

[1:04:53] to have those

[1:04:54] discussions, because

[1:04:54] I think it'd be wise

[1:04:56] for the state to sort

[1:04:57] of keep an eye on

[1:04:58] where those funds are

[1:05:10] >> Thank you.

[1:05:12] >> Mr. Bennett.

[1:05:13] >> Yes, thank you,

[1:05:14] Madam Vice Chair. And

[1:05:16] and Senator McPike.

[1:05:17] It is it is obviously

[1:05:18] an issue of concern,

[1:05:19] especially in rural

[1:05:30] seeing a larger

[1:05:31] capital infront

[1:05:33] consolidate as as you

[1:05:35] know, as economies of

[1:05:36] scale take effect,

[1:05:37] also declining in

[1:05:38] population. And I

[1:05:50] whether it's due to

[1:05:51] declining population

[1:05:52] or the need for just

[1:05:54] a, you know, reducing

[1:05:55] the, the capital

[1:05:57] imprint on their

[1:05:58] community. So we'll

[1:05:59] definitely keep that

[1:05:59] in mind, take that

[1:06:10] going to get choked

[1:06:11] up on. Literally.

[1:06:15] >> I'll pass.

[1:06:30] consolidate schools

[1:06:31] that that can be

[1:06:33] baked into funding,

[1:06:36] funding available

[1:06:38] opportunities.

[1:06:50] do know, thinking

[1:06:52] back, I want to say

[1:06:54] 2021, but several

[1:06:55] years ago, the last

[1:06:57] joint consolidation

[1:06:58] between school

[1:06:59] divisions with the

[1:07:10] joint division, which

[1:07:12] I think it generated

[1:07:14] savings of around $1

[1:07:15] million per year. And

[1:07:16] they were able to do

[1:07:17] it in a way that

[1:07:19] didn't actually lose

[1:07:30] regionalism and

[1:07:31] consolidation was

[1:07:32] encouraged and

[1:07:33] supported by the

[1:07:34] General Assembly.

[1:07:35] >> Thank you.

[1:07:36] >> Any other

[1:07:37] questions from

[1:07:38] members of the

[1:07:48] sales tax is the

[1:07:51] opportunity to issue

[1:07:52] bonds around a new,

[1:07:55] you know, flow of, of

[1:07:58] revenue. Can you tell

[1:08:10] the sunset in 20, 20

[1:08:12] years with like

[1:08:14] issuing bonds for

[1:08:15] school construction

[1:08:17] project?

[1:08:18] >> Okay, okay.

[1:08:30] with the date in

[1:08:31] terms of when the 20

[1:08:33] years kicks off and

[1:08:35] general bonding, and

[1:08:36] there are procurement

[1:08:37] experts here much

[1:08:38] more qualified than I

[1:08:39] to comment about it.

[1:08:50] maybe something to

[1:08:51] consider with future

[1:08:52] legislative action.

[1:08:53] If that is indeed an

[1:08:55] issue.

[1:08:56] >> What do my fellow

[1:09:10] maybe for a future

[1:09:12] meeting, maybe we

[1:09:13] could address that.

[1:09:14] What do you all think.

[1:09:15] >> Would be great?

[1:09:16] >> Yeah. Okay. Maybe

[1:09:17] that's we could

[1:09:18] bookmark that as

[1:09:19] something we want to

[1:09:30] localities I have

[1:09:31] four that that I

[1:09:33] represent. One of

[1:09:33] them have talked

[1:09:34] about the real need

[1:09:36] for to be able to go

[1:09:37] back and fund

[1:09:38] existing bond,

[1:09:38] purchase a bond,

[1:09:50] high quality

[1:09:51] education that we're

[1:09:52] demanding from them,

[1:09:53] I think it makes

[1:09:54] sense, and I would

[1:09:55] encourage us to

[1:09:56] readdress that issue.

[1:09:56] I think, in a sense

[1:09:57] of fairness to both

[1:10:10] payment of bonds that

[1:10:13] have already been or

[1:10:14] construction projects

[1:10:15] that have already

[1:10:16] been started?

[1:10:17] >> Yes. Yeah. Under

[1:10:18] the 1% program, the

[1:10:30] addressing the debt

[1:10:31] service?

[1:10:33] >> Yeah.

[1:10:34] >> Okay.

[1:10:34] >> That the Senate

[1:10:35] agrees.

[1:10:36] >> Okay.

[1:10:36] >> So he.

[1:10:38] >> Just speaks for

[1:10:50] >> All right. Going

[1:10:51] back to the agenda,

[1:10:53] our next item of

[1:10:55] business is public

[1:10:56] comment and other

[1:10:58] business. Do we have

[1:11:09] of the commission?

[1:11:11] >> Madam chair.

[1:11:12] >> Delegate Runyon.

[1:11:14] >> Madam chair, I

[1:11:15] appreciate this. And

[1:11:15] this is really

[1:11:16] interesting as we

[1:11:17] look or saw some of

[1:11:19] the presentation

[1:11:30] interesting. I find

[1:11:31] that very appreciate

[1:11:32] that. What is what's

[1:11:34] fascinating is I have

[1:11:35] a regional career,

[1:11:36] actually, I have two

[1:11:37] regional career and

[1:11:38] technical centers in

[1:11:50] district technical

[1:11:51] center. And so I'd

[1:11:52] like for this

[1:11:52] commission to take

[1:11:53] that up and look at

[1:11:54] that. It does make

[1:11:55] sense to me, at least

[1:11:57] in my rural area, for

[1:11:58] us to create some

[1:12:11] for students to

[1:12:12] participate in a

[1:12:13] nontraditional way.

[1:12:14] But we've got to be

[1:12:15] innovative, and we've

[1:12:16] got to allow the

[1:12:17] system to provide for

[1:12:29] requesting

[1:12:31] information on how

[1:12:33] regional education

[1:12:34] centers or regional

[1:12:35] career and tech

[1:12:36] center schools are

[1:12:38] constructed or their

[1:12:50] someone can present

[1:12:52] how these regional

[1:12:54] education centers

[1:12:55] when they need

[1:12:56] upgrading, what what

[1:13:10] to look at in future

[1:13:12] meetings? Okay.

[1:13:16] Hearing none, that

[1:13:17] completes our agenda.

[1:13:18] >> Motion to adjourn.

[1:13:19] >> Second.

Commission on School Construction and Modernization

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