A.
All applications for building permits shall be subject to a surcharge
of 1.16% of the proposed construction valuation for the local school
district and 0.09% of the proposed construction valuation for POLYTECH
School District as the construction valuation shall be determined
by the Department of Planning Services. The purpose of the surcharge
is to establish financial assistance to individual school districts,
disbursements limited to capital improvements.
B.
The surcharge on building permits for construction of buildings not
involving residential use and occupancy shall be limited to the first
$1,000,000 of construction value.
C.
The surcharge on building permits for construction of buildings for
residential use and occupancy shall not be limited. Notwithstanding
the above, applications for building permits where the proposed construction
value as determined by the Department of Planning Services is less
than $60,000 and such application is submitted following the issuance
of the original certificate of occupancy shall be exempted from this
article.
D.
Exemptions. The following shall be exempt from the building permit
surcharge:
(1)
Building permits applied for by an organization exempt from tax under
§ 501(c)(3) of the Federal Internal Revenue Code which provides
owner-occupied housing to low-income households by rehabilitation
of residential properties and reselling said properties without profit,
nor to the Delaware State Housing Authority, nor to any applicant
funded by the Delaware State Housing Authority.
(2)
Building permits applied for by any state or local government department
or agency.
(3)
Building permits applied for by any organization exempt from tax
under § 501(c)(3) of the Federal Internal Revenue Code regardless
of the residential or nonresidential use of the proposed structure.
Such organizations shall provide proof of tax-exempt status at the
time of building permit application.
(4)
Buildings and structures, other than residential structures, devoted
primarily to agricultural or public safety uses, including, but not
limited to, fire and ambulance companies and state and local police
organizations, which shall be considered public safety uses.
(5)
The surcharge provided for herein for local school districts shall not be added to building permits for residential structures or additions and renovations thereto or accessory structures on residential properties located within a subdivision or land development for which a per-unit mitigation fee subject to the County's Adequate Public Facilities-Schools regulations [§ 187-90.2F(4)] has been paid. The surcharge provided for herein for POLYTECH School District shall be collected regardless of payment of a per-unit mitigation fee.
(6)
Existing structures destroyed or demolished will not be assessed
a surcharge for the reconstruction, provided that the replacement
structure has the same or less square footage and occurs within 24
months of the demolition. If the square footage is greater than the
original structure, the surcharge shall be assessed based upon the
value of the additional square footage.
E.
The fund shall be known as the "School District Capital Improvement
Fund" (SDCIF) and shall be held by the County in the name of each
of the following individual school districts: Capital, Caesar Rodney,
Lake Forest, Milford, Smyrna, Woodbridge, and POLYTECH.
Proceeds of the SDCIF shall be collected on a continuous basis
by the Kent County Levy Court and shall be held in a reserved account
for each school district. Funds collected for building permits issued
in each school district shall be accounted for by the school district.
A.
The Kent County Levy Court shall, as part of its annual budgeting
process, distribute to each school district the funds collected during
the preceding fiscal year, provided that:
(1)
The school district has capital improvements for the ensuing fiscal
year that are eligible for state matching funds pursuant to a certificate
of necessity issued by the State Department of Education (DOE) for
such capital improvements.
B.
Funds not expended in the manner set forth above shall continue to
be held in a restricted reserve account for the school district from
year to year until such time as they are expended. Kent County may
retain interest, if any, accruing on such accounts, as an administration
fee; provided, however, said administration fee shall not exceed $100,000
per year. School districts seeking disbursements of the funds shall
file an application with the County Department of Finance identifying
the qualifying capital improvement project and committing the school
district to expend the funds in accordance with the application.
Kent County Department of Planning Services shall determine
the school district location of each property for which a building
permit is issued for purposes of calculating the collection and disbursement
of funds to the various eligible school districts.
The Kent County Levy Court is authorized to promulgate such
rules, procedures and regulations deemed to be necessary for the purpose
of giving full force and effect to the provisions of this article.
The Kent County Levy Court, at the request of the school district,
may allow an acceptable credit from a donor for the SDCIF surcharge
for in-kind contributions to the school district.
This article shall be effective on July 12, 2006; provided; however, that § 105-25 shall become effective for all contracts entered into after July 11, 2006, for which building permits or certificates of occupancy are sought after July 11, 2006, and no provision of this article shall be construed to affect transactions resulting from contracts entered into prior to July 12, 2006, so long as a copy of the contract accompanied by an affidavit verifying the existence and validity of the contract shall be submitted to the Director of the Department of Planning Services at the time of making the application for a building permit.
