1. CFO No.: MEMORANDUM

December 16, 2002
CONTACT PERSON
NAME:
Jerry Martin
PHONE:
(850) 487-1130
SUNCOM: 277-1130
CFO No.:
MEMORANDUM
03-33
TO:
District School Superintendents
FROM:
Wayne V. Pierson
SUBJECT:
Qualified Zone Academy Bonds (QZABs)
Qualified Zone Academy Bonds (QZABs) are available again this year.
Florida’s allocation for fiscal year 2002 is $19,196,000. Listed below is
information relevant to the program and application process.
General Information on the Qualified Zone Academy Bonds (QZAB) Program
1.
?
QZABs are financial instruments that provide a different kind of subsidy
in the form of
tax credit to a bank
or other financial institution that holds
the QZABs. The approved QZAB program is one in which states or local
governments are authorized to issue qualified zone academy bonds for use
by a qualified zone academy. Florida will allocate QZAB authority
amounts to approved eligible district/Qualified Zone Academy projects,
but will not issue QZAB bonds.
2.
?
The tax credits and bonding authority are made available by the federal
government to support innovative school partnerships, enhance reform
initiatives including augmenting federal education programs, technology
and vocational equipment, and development of curriculum or teacher
training to promote market driven technology. To become eligible, a
school must be located in either an Empowerment Zone, an Enterprise
Community, or have 35 percent or more of its students eligible for free or
reduced lunch under the National School Lunch Act, and have established
a partnership with a business. Miami- Dade County and the City of
Jacksonville are designated as Empowerment Zones; Miami- Dade
County, Jackson County, the City of Tampa, and Immokalee/Hendry
Counties (Southwest Alliance) are designated as Enterprise Communities.

CFO 03-33
December 16, 2002
Page 2
3.
?
The district will determine whether the purposes for which QZABs are issued conform to
state law regarding indebtedness; will obtain written agreements between a Qualified Zone
Academy and one or more local businesses which pledge contributions having a present value
of at least 10 percent of the gross proceeds of the QZAB; will work with the financial
institution to issue the QZABs; and will be responsible for repayment of the principal upon
maturity.
a. School districts shall not use PECO or CO&DS bond proceeds to pay QZAB debt,
but may use 2 mill funds, not bond proceeds, to repay QZAB debt.
b. If 2 mill proceeds are proposed for repayment of QZAB debt, it shall not exceed
the COPs limit established for 2 mill in Section 236.25, Florida Statute.
c. The state has not been authorized to secure QZAB loans.
4.
?
Florida has a total allocation of $19,196,000 for 2002. Allocations for 2003 will not be
available until early 2003.
5.
?
Information from the U.S. Secretary of Education can be found at the following website:
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/qzabfin.html
Application Procedures and Deadline
Fill in the attached application and return by March 1, 2003, to:
Janet Burns
Florida Department of Education
325 W. Gaines Street, Room 1004G
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400
This form can be down-loaded from the Department of Education’s website at:
http://www.firn.edu/doe/oef/qzabmemo.htm
Please be sure that the fund source proposed to repay the bond indebtedness is listed clearly on the
form.
Allocation Procedure
The Department will form a committee to review the applications and distribute the bonding
authority based on the quality of the proposed programs.
If you have additional questions, please call Jerry Martin at (850) 487-1130 (SUNCOM
277-1130), or Janet Burns at (850) 921-2962 (SUNCOM 291-2962).
WVP/jb
Attachment

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