SB 2854 Summary

• Appropriates $170,531,345 from the State General Fund and $43,117,241 from the Education Enhancement Fund to public community and junior colleges for fiscal year 2016 (July 1, 2015 - June 30, 2016).

• Distributes funds based on full-time equivalency (FTE) enrollment with weighted formulas for academic programs (1.0), technical programs (1.0), virtual community college (0.50), career programs (1.0), associate degree nursing (1.19), and allied health (1.19).

• Appropriates additional funds for employee health insurance ($23,648,000 plus $1,410,000), workforce development centers ($4,500,000), advanced training centers ($2,250,000), nursing and allied health programs ($2,556,922), and educational technology ($7,099,160).

• Provides $3,000,000 for a dropout recovery initiative with $200,000 allocated to each of the 15 participating community and junior colleges, requiring a report on GED and career program enrollments by August 1, 2016.

• Allocates $4,000,000 from the Capital Expense Fund for construction, repair, and renovation projects at the community and junior colleges, with specific amounts designated for each institution.