Amend the bill, as and if amended, Part IB, Section 109, DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE, page 461, proviso 109.11, by striking Subsection (J), found on lines 17 through 22 and inserting:
/ (J) On or before August 1, 2016, each scholarship funding organization organized and operating pursuant to SECTION 9 of H. 4230, R. 130, Act 92 of 2015 shall deposit with the Educational Credit for Exceptional Needs Children Fund all remaining funds on hand as of July 1, 2016. Scholarship funding organizations organized and operating pursuant to SECTION 9 shall remain in existence after the effective date of this act solely for the purpose of winding down operations and depositing remaining funds with the Educational Credit for Exceptional Needs Children Fund pursuant to this provision. On August 1, 2016 all scholarship funding organizations organized pursuant to SECTION 9 shall cease to exist. The department shall conduct a comprehensive study of the Exceptional Needs Tax Credit program. The study shall examine the following:
(1) whether or not the students participating in the program have experienced measurable improvement as a result of participation;
(2) the allocation of scholarship funds and tax credits among students, including the effect of funding limitations on the addition of new participants; the demographic and socio-economic data of the participants and their families; and the geographical distribution of the participants;
(3) the distribution of scholarship funds among all eligible schools;
(4) the nature and quality of services provided by eligible schools participating in the program, including retention rates of participating students among the schools, with an analysis of the reasons that students not retained by a school made a different educational choice and where those students chose to attend rather than the eligible school;
(5) identification of the schools in which the most measurable improvement has occurred among students, with an analysis of the types of schools achieving the best results and best practices implemented by those schools; and
(6) any other aspect of the program that the department determines would be relevant and useful in making future policy decisions in regard to the program and its continued existence or expansion.
The department shall submit a report of its study to the General Assembly no later than January 15, 2018.
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend sections, totals and title to conform.