Waugh to Introduce New Pre-Approved School Design Legislation

Recent Study of York County Schools Included Recommendation to Address School Construction Costs

HARRISBURG – In response to a recent study of York County schools, Senator Mike Waugh (R-York) is developing another round of legislation, this time to mandate that all school districts use a pre-approved state-standardized plan for all new school construction in order to receive state subsidies toward their construction project. 

"My reasons for developing this updated legislation are numerous," said Waugh.  "The first being the support given to pre-designed school buildings in the recently released study of York County school districts." 

Thanks to the strong efforts by Representative Bev Mackereth with the support of several good community organizations, a study was conducted to take a closer look at the operations and funding needs of the schools in York County, culminating in a report entitled "Examining Resource Use and Areas for Enhanced Cooperation in York County's School Districts."  The study, which was conducted by Augenblick, Palaich, and Associates, Inc. of Denver, Colorado, resulted in six "high priority" recommendations, one of which was to "address new school building construction issues" including using school building prototypes.   

"Clearly, there is support for this concept.  And we have waited far too long for such a program to be approved and implemented, which is another reason I am introducing this new language," said Waugh, who has introduced other pre-approved school design legislation every year since the 1997-1998 legislative session when he was a member of the House of Representatives.  "The most important difference with my new proposal is that it will be a requirement for schools, rather than an incentive, to use pre-approved designs, and if they don't, they will not qualify for their state construction reimbursement funding." 

Although the state Department of Education implemented a school design clearinghouse in 2005, there is a realization that their attempt to use the program on a liberal opt-in basis has not been successful, which is another reason Waugh believes now is the time for legislation implementing a requirement to use prototypical designs. 

"The time is right, support is strong, and we need to make this a requirement for school districts," said Waugh, who learned from the Department that because their clearinghouse program is optional, there is no tracking system to know when schools use one of the very few designs – six for elementary schools and one for middle schools – currently in the clearinghouse.  "'Mandates' are usually costly initiatives for schools, however, I believe this proposal will reduce costs for school districts and in turn reduce the burden on taxpayers," said Waugh. 

An additional measure Waugh looks to include in his new legislation would require the Department of Education to develop designs on a regional basis for six regions of the state – North East, North West, South East, South West, North Central, and South Central. 

"I look forward to working with my colleagues from across the Commonwealth to advance this legislation through to the end," said Waugh.  "And I have to commend Representative Mackereth for her work in getting the York County study completed.  She is dedicated to addressing the issues surrounding ever-rising school costs and has been a strong proponent of pre-approved school designs."