SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1987        FILED ON: 1/20/2017

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 325

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Bruce E. Tarr

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relative to Learning Innovation for Tomorrow (LIFT) to fund the foundation budget review commission.

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PETITION OF:

SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1987        FILED ON: 1/20/2017

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 325

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninetieth General Court
(2017-2018)

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An Act relative to Learning Innovation for Tomorrow (LIFT) to fund the foundation budget review commission.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Chapter 10 of the General Laws as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition is hereby amended by inserting after section 35CCC the following section:-

Section_. There shall be established and set upon the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Learning Innovation for Tomorrow (LIFT) fund, whose purpose shall be to finance the development and implementation of innovation in the public education of students throughout the commonwealth, without regard or preference to any particular geographic location or region of the commonwealth.

Amounts shall be credited to the fund pursuant to clause (i), (ii) and (iii) of this section, provided that the fund may be supplemented through appropriation from the general fund or other available sources including but not limited to any interest earned on monies in the fund; any funds from private sources including, but not limited to, gifts, grants and donations received by the commonwealth that are specifically designated to be credited to the fund, provided further that expenditure from the fund shall be made pursuant to a specific line item created to distribute funding by the Department of elementary, and secondary education.

Funds may be expended from the fund for the following purposes:

(1)To support the plan to fund the recommendations of the first year of the Foundation Budget review commission as established under section 4 of chapter 70

In promulgating regulations to administer the fund, the department shall establish and monitor measurable benchmarks for progress and accomplishment, and shall report annually to the clerks of the house and senate, the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on education, and the secretary of education not later than December 31 of each year on the impacts of fund spending.

moves to further amendment by inserting after section __the following new section:-

(i). Section 64 of chapter 23k of the general laws as appearing in the 2014 official edition is hereby amended by striking out from line 6-12 the following:-“provided, however that 35 per cent of the funds received shall be appropriated for the purposes of higher education to supplement, not offset, any reduction in the general appropriation act from the previous fiscal year; and provided further, that any expenditures from the fund for K-12 education shall be used to supplement, and not offset, any reduction in line item 7061-0008 of the general appropriation act from the previous fiscal year’s general appropriation act” and inserting in place thereof the following:-“provided, however, that 40 per cent of the funds received shall be appropriated for the purposes of higher education and provided further, that 60 per cent of the funds received shall be appropriated to the implementation of the first year of the foundation budget review commission recommendations.

(ii). Section 10 of chapter 152 of the acts of 1997 are hereby amended by inserting in at the end of sub clause (iii) in clause (C) the following:- (iv) Not less than twenty million plus fifty per cent of surplus over required debt service to the implementation of the first year of the foundation budget review commission recommendations.

(iii). Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, prior to transferring the consolidated net surplus in the budgetary funds to the Commonwealth Stabilization Fund under section 5C of chapter 29 of the General Laws, the comptroller shall dispose of the consolidated net surplus in the budgetary funds as follows: (1) transfer 1/3 of the surplus, not to exceed $10,000,000, to the Massachusetts Community Preservation Trust Fund established in section 9 of chapter 44B of the General Laws; (ii) transfer 1/3 of the surplus, not to exceed $10,000,000, to the Massachusetts Life Sciences Investment Fund established in section 6  of the chapter 23I of the General Laws; and (iii) transfer 1/3 of the surplus, not to exceed $10,000,000 to the first year of the foundation budget review commission as established by section 4 of chapter 70 recommendations.