§18-9F-6. Allocation of funds; eligibility for funding.

(a) On or before May 1 of each year, the authority shall determine the amount of funds available in the School Access Safety Fund for allocation and disbursement during that fiscal year.

(b) The authority shall divide the amount of funds available pursuant to subsection (a) of this section by the total net enrollment in public schools for the state as a whole. That quotient is the per pupil amount. The authority shall allocate to each county board the per pupil amount of funds for each student in net enrollment of that county, as defined in section two, article nine-a of this chapter.

(c) The authority shall notify in writing each county board of education the amount of funds available to that board as soon as practicable upon determining that amount pursuant to subsection (b) of this section.

(d) Except as provided in subdivision (3) of this subsection, to be eligible to receive a disbursement of funds pursuant to this article, a county board shall contribute local funds derived from bonding, special levy or other identified sources to the school access safety projects contained in the county board's school access safety plan.

(1) The amount of a county board's contribution shall equal at least fifteen percent of the funds available to the county board pursuant to subsection (b) of this section.

(2) A county board may submit a financial hardship waiver request to the state board for consideration regarding the county board's inability to provide the contribution required by this subsection. Upon review and approval of the request by the state board, the authority shall waive the contribution requirement for that county board and allocate and disburse funds pursuant to this article.

(e) The authority may disburse funds pursuant to this section only to a county board that:

(1) Has a safety plan that has been approved by the authority; and

(2) Is prepared to commence expending the funds during the fiscal year in which the funds are disbursed.

(f) The authority may disburse funds to a county board in a lump sum or according to a schedule of payments adopted by the authority that is consistent with its guidelines.

(g) To encourage county boards to proceed promptly with school access safety planning and to prepare for the expenditure of funds derived pursuant to this article, a county board forfeits any funds that it fails to expend within one year of disbursement by the authority. The county board is ineligible for any additional allocation or disbursement pursuant to this article until it is prepared to expend funds according to an approved school access safety plan.

(1) The authority may authorize an extension beyond the one-year forfeiture period not to exceed an additional six months.

(2) Any forfeited funds shall be returned to the School Access Safety Fund and made available for future allocation and disbursement.