Page 485

House Bill No. 5506

Public Act No. 22-118 485 of 739

(3) the Board of Trustees for The University of Connecticut on behalf of the university, (4) the board of governors for an independent institution of higher education, as defined in subsection (a) of section 10a-173, or the equivalent of such a board, on behalf of the independent institution of higher education, and (5) any other third-party not-for-profit corporation approved by the Commissioner of Education, shall be eligible to apply for and accept grants for a school building project, as defined in section 10-282, as provided in chapter 173, and may be eligible for reimbursement, except as otherwise provided for, up to eighty per cent of the eligible cost of [any capital expenditure for the purchase, construction, extension, replacement, leasing or major alteration of] the school building project for an interdistrict magnet school [facilities] facility, including any expenditure for the purchase of equipment, in accordance with this section. To be eligible for reimbursement under this section a [magnet school construction project] school building project for an interdistrict magnet school facility shall meet the requirements for a school building project established in chapter 173, except that the Commissioner of Administrative Services, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education, may waive any requirement in said chapter for good cause. [On and after July 1, 2011, the Commissioner of Administrative Services shall approve only applications for reimbursement under this section that the Commissioner of Education finds will reduce racial, ethnic and economic isolation. Applications for reimbursement under this section for the construction of new interdistrict magnet schools shall not be accepted until the Commissioner of Education develops a comprehensive state-wide interdistrict magnet school plan, in accordance with the provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of section 10-264l, unless the Commissioner of Education determines that such construction will assist the state in meeting its obligations pursuant to the decision in Sheff v. O'Neill, 238 Conn. 1 (1996), or any related stipulation or order in effect, as determined by the Commissioner of Education.]