Minutes 05/25/1999 - Laserfiche WebLink

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May 25, 1999 The term "qualified zone academy" means any public school (or academic program within a public school) that is established by and operated under the supervision of an eligible local education agency to provide education or training below the post-secondary level if: such public school or program (as the case may be) is designed in cooperation with business to enhance the academic curriculum, increase graduation and employment rates, and better prepare students for the rigors of college and the increasingly complex workforce; students in such public school or program (as the case may be) will be subject to the same academic standards and assessments as other students educated by the eligible local education agency; the comprehensive education plan of such public school or program is approved by the eligible local education agency; and such public school is located in an empowerment zone or enterprise community or a certain percentage of the students attending such school or participating in such program (as the case may be) will be eligible for free or reduced-cost lunches under the school lunch program established under the National School Lunch Act. The term "eligible local education agency" means any local education agency as defined in section 14101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, and legal counsel has advised that the Portsmouth School Board (the "School Board") is the eligible local education agency for the City of Portsmouth, Virginia ("Portsmouth"); and WHEREAS, the private business contribution requirement is met with respect to any issue of QZABs if the eligible local education agency that established the qualified zone academy has written commitments from private entities to make qualified contributions having a present value (as of the date of issuance of the issue) of not less than 10 percent of the proceeds of the issue; and WHEREAS, under Section 1397E of the Tax Code, the Commonwealth of Virginia has available in calendar year 1999 $17,239,000 in QZAB issuing capacity to be allocated to qualified zone academies within the Commonwealth of Virginia; and WHEREAS, the General Assembly of Virginia has appointed the Virginia Secretary of Education (the "Secretary") to make allocations of Virginia's QZAB issuing capacity and has directed the Secretary to give priority to allocation requests from certain Virginia public schools; and WHEREAS, as set forth in a letter dated April 6, 1999, from the Secretary to the Superintendent of Portsmouth City Schools (the "Superintendent"), the Secretary has reserved $4,950,764 of Virginia's QZAB issuing capacity to be allocated to QZABs to be issued by Portsmouth to finance qualified purposes at the schools listed in Attachment A; and WHEREAS, the School Board has by resolution adopted May __, 1999 (the "School Board Resolution"), determined that the QZAB program presents a unique opportunity to secure Iow-cost financing for certain public schools in Portsmouth and that it is advisable (I) to request the Council of the City of Portsmouth, Virginia to incur debt and to issue general obligation QZABs in an amount not in excess of $4,950,764.00, and (ii) to take such actions as may be necessary or desirable to or for the issuance of valid QZABs under Section 1397E of the Tax Code and Virginia law; and WHEREAS, in the School Board Resolution the School Board also (I) designated and established all of the schools listed in Attachment A hereto as qualified zone academies (the "Portsmouth QZAs") and (ii) specified the type and quality of contributions acceptable to be counted as qualified contributions for purposes of the private business contribution requirement; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Portsmouth, Virginia as follows: