Missouri would offer school renovation grants if lawmakers provide money

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education would approve eligible projects and pay grants covering 60% of actual costs after completion. Eligible work would maintain facilities where students attend regularly, including roof repairs, heating and cooling work, and related health or environmental improvements. Without money set aside by lawmakers, the education department would not have to provide grants. Awards would depend on available money. Districts would reserve their remaining share from state classroom trust fund payments and report actual costs after completing the work. Costs would have to meet the education department’s standards. Unspent money would remain in the grant fund at the end of each two-year budget period, and investment earnings would go into that fund. Applications would start with the 2026–27 school year. Unless lawmakers renew it, the program would expire six years after the section takes effect. The section would end September 1 of the next calendar year.

The state education department would give first-time applicants and districts showing specified renovation needs priority for grants. Districts could receive repeat grants, but first-time applicants would come before districts that had already received one. Need categories would rank fire or natural disaster damage first, enrollment growth second, and below-average taxable property values per student third. Damage costs would have to exceed insurance payments. Cumulative fall enrollment growth over the three preceding years would have to exceed 6%. Within each need category, scores would depend on districts’ relative total school tax rates. Other applications would receive money in arrival order only after all priority projects were funded and money remained.