2010 Hawaii Code
DIVISION 1. GOVERNMENT
TITLE 18. EDUCATION
302B. Public Charter Schools
§302B-3.6 Occupancy and use of facilities of public schools.

[§302B-3.6] Occupancy and use of facilities of public schools. (a) When the department considers whether to close any particular public school, the department shall submit a notice of possible availability of a public school or notice of vacancy of a public school to the charter school review panel pursuant to section 302A-1151.5(b); provided that the department has not elected to use the public school to support education programs.

(b) If a charter school exclusively or jointly occupies or uses buildings or facilities of a public school immediately prior to converting to a charter school, upon conversion that charter school shall be given continued exclusive or joint use of the buildings or facilities; provided that:

(1) The State may reclaim some or all of the buildings or facilities if it demonstrates a tangible and imperative need for such reclamation;

(2) The State and the conversion charter school voluntarily enter into an agreement detailing the portion of those buildings or facilities that shall be reclaimed by the State and a timetable for the reclamation. If a timetable cannot be reached, the State may petition the panel for the reclamation, and the panel may grant the petition only to the extent that is not possible for the conversion charter school and the department to jointly occupy or use the buildings or facilities.

(c) Upon receipt of a notice pursuant to section 302A-1151.5(b), the panel shall solicit applications from charter schools interested in using and occupying all or portions of the facilities of the public school by:

(1) Promptly notifying all charter schools that the public school is being considered for closure; and

(2) Affording each charter school an opportunity to submit an application with a written explanation and justification of why the charter school should be considered for possible occupancy and use of the facilities of the public school.

(d) After fully considering each charter school's application and based on the applications received and on other considerations, the panel shall:

(1) Provide a written response to each charter school's application after each application has been fully considered; and

(2) Compile a prioritized list of charter schools and submit the list to the department for final determination of which charter school, if any, shall be authorized to use and occupy the public school facilities.

(e) Upon the selection of a charter school to use a vacant school facility or portion of a school facility, the department and the panel shall enter into necessary agreements within ninety days of the selection to carry out the purposes of this section; provided that any agreement between the panel and the department shall stipulate that a charter school that uses and occupies a public school facility or portion of a public school facility shall be responsible for the full or pro rata share of the repair and maintenance costs for that facility or portion of the facility, as the case may be.

(f) The panel shall adopt policies and procedures necessary to carry out the purposes of this section, including but not limited to:

(1) Procedures for charter schools to apply in writing to use vacant school facilities;

(2) Criteria for the panel to use in determining which charter schools to include on the prioritized list to be submitted to the department; and

(3) Procedures for the panel to notify charter school applicants that are granted or denied the use of vacant school facilities.

(g) For purposes of this section, "public school" means any school that falls within the definition of public schools in section 302A-101, except for charter schools. [L 2010, c 144, §3]