Okla. Stat. tit. 70, § 70-1-117

A. The general fund of any school district is hereby defined as

a current expense fund and shall consist of all revenue or monies

that can legally be expended within a certain specified fiscal year,

but shall not be considered as including any money derived from a

special building fund levy made in accordance with the provisions of

Section 10 of Article X of the Oklahoma Constitution, nor shall it

include any monies derived from the sale of bonds issued under the

provisions of Section 26 of Article X of the Oklahoma Constitution.

All monies derived from the proceeds of the school levies made

pursuant to the provisions of Section 9 of Article X of the Oklahoma

Constitution shall be placed in the general fund provided by this

section. Expenditures from the general fund shall be noncapital in

nature. All monies derived from state-dedicated revenue, state-

appropriated revenue unless otherwise provided for by law, and

county sources shall be placed in the general fund provided for by

this section. Except as provided for in subsections F, K, and L of

this section, a district shall not be authorized to make capital

expenditures as defined by this section from the general fund.

B. For purposes of this section, state-dedicated revenue shall

be any registration or license fees, taxes, or penalties collected

at the state level and distributed to common school districts.

County sources shall be all funds collected by the county and

distributed to common school districts but shall not include any

funds derived from the building fund levy made in accordance with

the provisions of Section 10 of Article X of the Oklahoma

Constitution or funds derived from the sinking fund levy made in

accordance with the provisions of Section 26 of Article X of the

Oklahoma Constitution.

C. For the purposes of this section, a capital expenditure

shall be an expenditure which results in the acquisition of fixed

assets or additions to fixed assets. Capital expenditures shall

include, but shall not be limited to, purchases of land or existing

buildings, purchases of real property, improvements of grounds and

sites for construction purposes, all expenditures for construction

of buildings unless authorized by the State Board of Education or

the State Board of Career and Technology Education upon application

to the appropriate state board pursuant to subsection F of this

section, additions to buildings, remodeling of buildings if such

remodeling involves changes to roof structures or load-bearing

walls, professional services, salaries and expenses of architects

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools Page 115

and engineers hired or assigned to capital projects except for such

services, salaries, and expenses as are applicable in preparation

for a bond issue, expenditures for the initial installation and

extension of service systems and built-in heat or air equipment to

existing buildings, expenditures for the replacement of a building

which has been destroyed, installments and lease payments on

property including interest that have a terminal date and result in

the acquisition of property, and expenditures for preliminary

studies made prior to the time that authority to proceed with a

construction project is given if authority is received within the

same fiscal year that the expenditure was made.

D. Noncapital expenditures shall include, but shall not be

limited to, expenditures for maintenance, repair, and replacement of

property and equipment, initial or additional purchases of furniture

and equipment, direct expenses for maintenance of plant including

grounds, salaries for maintenance of plant including salaries for

the upkeep of grounds, and repair and replacement of building

structures which do not add to existing facilities and which do not

involve changes in roof structures or load-bearing walls and which

are not classified as a capital expenditure by this section.
ture

and equipment, direct expenses for maintenance of plant including

grounds, salaries for maintenance of plant including salaries for

the upkeep of grounds, and repair and replacement of building

structures which do not add to existing facilities and which do not

involve changes in roof structures or load-bearing walls and which

are not classified as a capital expenditure by this section.

E. The State Board of Education shall adopt and amend

regulations regarding the classification, definition, and financial

administration of funds, accounts, and expenditures in accordance

with the requirements of this section.

F. A school district shall be authorized to make capital

expenditures from the general fund to defray the cost of rebuilding

a school building only if a school building or facility has been

destroyed by a fire or natural disaster, such as flood, tornado, or

other act of God, or by an act of a public enemy of the United

States or this state and monies received by the district through

insurance coverage, federal reimbursement, contributions, and

allocation from the State Board of Education from the State Public

Common School Building Equalization Fund are insufficient to rebuild

the facility. Capital expenditures from the general fund pursuant

to this subsection shall be limited to an amount necessary to defray

the cost of rebuilding the facility which exceeds monies received by

the school district through insurance, federal reimbursement,

contributions, and state allocations.

G. Schools which receive gifts, donations, or state-

appropriated monies for the purpose of capital expenditures or

projects shall place such monies in the building fund, as provided

by Section 1-118 of this title, and not in the general fund. School

districts which receive gifts, grants, or donations of monies for

noncapital expenditures may place the monies in the general fund,

and such monies shall not be required to be used during the year in

which the money was received but may accumulate from year to year.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools Page 116

H. School districts which receive monies from rental, sale, or

lease of buildings, impact aid monies, or grants, gifts, or

donations for capital purposes, whether from state, federal, or

other sources, may place such monies in the building fund authorized

by Section 1-118 of this title or the general fund authorized by

this section.

I. Any construction of a building included as a capital

expenditure from the general fund of a school district which is

authorized and has had a contractual agreement concerning such

construction executed prior to July 1, 1991, may be proceeded with

and completed as authorized prior to July 1, 1991, as a capital

expenditure from such general fund.

J. School districts receiving revenues authorized by Section 9B

of Article X of the Oklahoma Constitution shall be authorized to

make capital expenditures from the general revenue fund no greater

than the amount levied by the incentive millage.

K. Upon the approval of the State Board of Education, a school

district shall be authorized to make capital expenditures as defined

in this section from its general fund if:

1. A bond issue has been rejected at an election by the school

district electors voting on that question within the current school

year, as certified by the secretary of the county election board; or

2. The school district has voted indebtedness at any time

within the preceding three (3) school years through the issuance of

bonds or through approval by voters of issuance of new bonds for

more than eighty-five percent (85%) of the maximum allowable

pursuant to the provisions of Section 26 of Article X of the

Oklahoma Constitution as shown on the school district budget filed

with the State Board of Equalization for the current school year and

certifications by the Attorney General prior to April 1 of the
uance of

bonds or through approval by voters of issuance of new bonds for

more than eighty-five percent (85%) of the maximum allowable

pursuant to the provisions of Section 26 of Article X of the

Oklahoma Constitution as shown on the school district budget filed

with the State Board of Equalization for the current school year and

certifications by the Attorney General prior to April 1 of the

current school year. The State Board of Education shall establish

the rules to administer the provisions of this subsection which

shall include, but not be limited to, specification of a maximum

amount of general fund monies to be used for capital expenditures,

the purposes for which such funds may be expended, and the period of

time in which such funds shall be encumbered.

L. Other provisions of this section notwithstanding, a school

district shall be authorized to make capital expenditures from the

general fund if the total assessed property valuation per average

daily attendance is less than sixty percent (60%) of the state

average total assessed property valuation per average daily

attendance and if, for each year in which general fund revenue is

used for capital expenditures, the district has voted the five-mill

building fund levy authorized in Section 10 of Article X of the

Oklahoma Constitution and has voted indebtedness through the

issuance of new bonds for at least eighty-five percent (85%) within

the last three (3) years of the maximum allowable pursuant to the

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools Page 117

provisions of Section 26 of Article X of the Oklahoma Constitution

as shown on the school district budget filed with the State Board of

Equalization for the current school year and certifications by the

Attorney General prior to April 1 of the school year. Provided, the

maximum amount of general fund revenue used for capital expenditures

pursuant to this subsection shall not exceed five percent (5%) of

the total yearly revenue to the general fund. Such fund may not be

used for capital expenditures for more than five (5) consecutive

years and may only be utilized for remodeling or construction of

classroom facilities and such ancillary facilities to such

classrooms as may be necessary. Provided, further, the

Superintendent of Public Instruction shall certify in writing, prior

to the expenditure of the funds for which provision is made in this

subsection, that such expenditures are in compliance with the

provisions of this subsection.