Section 1035.10  Purpose

 

The purposes of this Part are to provide for the distribution of capital improvement grants to nonpublic Illinois institutions of higher learning for the purposes of laboratory, research and instructional area renovation.

 

(Source:  Amended at 11 Ill. Reg. 5202, effective March 12, 1987)

 

Section 1035.20  Definitions

 

            "Eligible gross square feet" means the total amount of gross square feet less:

 

            any space used as sectarian facilities;

 

            space owned by the institution but leased to a second party;

 

            space not owned by the institution; and

 

            space which is not used primarily to support education or educational services.

 

            "Gross square feet" means the on-campus nonresidential space as determined by the Board of Higher Education based upon the most recent submission for the Board's biennial Statewide Space Survey and other documentation as requested by the Board for clarification or substantiation in the event that material submitted by an applicant institution is incomplete or not of sufficient detail to provide an understanding of the proposed project or its justification.

 

            "Institution" means a privately operated college or university or a nonpublic institution of higher learning located in this State which offers associate, baccalaureate or post-baccalaureate degrees, and which is operating privately, not-for-profit and in conformity with standards substantially equivalent to those of the state-supported institutions of higher learning, for example as evidenced by the transferability of credits to state-supported institutions.  "Institution" does not include any educational organization used for sectarian instruction, as a place of religious teaching or worship or for any religious denomination or the training of ministers, priests, rabbis or other professional persons in the field of religion.

            "Renovation project" means a capital improvement project directly related to laboratory use, research or instruction and which falls into one of the following categories:

 

            "Remodeling" which means a capital improvement that has the primary objective of restoring or upgrading a structure or facility to its original operating condition or improving the existing functional capability or capacity of the structure or facility.

 

            "Utilities" which means a system for distributing or disbursing utility services from beyond the boundary line of existing buildings, additions or structures.

 

            "Sectarian facilities" means facilities used to further the religious interests of specific religions, denominations or sects and may include but are not limited to campus churches, chapels or temples.

 

(Source:  Amended at 11 Ill. Reg. 5202, effective March 12, 1987)

 

Section 1035.30  Eligibility for Institutional Renovation Grants

 

a)         Institutions eligible to apply for institutional renovation grants are those defined in Section 1035.20.

 

b)         Grants will be awarded only for renovation projects.

 

c)         To be eligible for a renovation grant, the space to be renovated must be on-campus nonresidential space owned by the institution and not leased to a second party.

 

d)         Grants shall not be awarded for any renovation project where the real property or facilities are used for sectarian purposes.

 

e)         No grant will be made to any institution that has not submitted required application documents, including audits, and that has not made required refunds, if any, for any grants made under either this or other grant programs administered by the Illinois Board of Higher Education, as provided for in Section 1035.50(b)(5),(6).

 

Section 1035.40  Application Requirements

 

a)         Applications for renovation projects shall include the following:

 

1)         a list of proposed projects with a description and estimated cost for each project;

 

2)         an accounting of the total gross square feet of space; and

 

3)         an accounting of the total eligible gross square feet of space.

 

b)         The Board of Higher Education shall review application documents of all institutions for compliance with the application and eligibility requirements.  The Board of Higher Education may request additional documents or a meeting between its staff and institutional representatives to discuss questions about application documents.  In the event that material submitted by an applicant institution is incomplete or not of sufficient detail to provide an understanding of the proposed project or its justification, the Board would request additional information for clarification or substantiation.

 

Section 1035.50  Grant Agreement

 

a)         Once the Board of Higher Education has approved a grant, the institution and the Board shall execute a grant agreement.

 

b)         Such grant agreement shall:

 

1)         be signed by the chief executive officer or chairman of the institution's board;

 

2)         specify the two-year period of time for which the grant is valid and during which grant funds may be expended by the institution;

 

3)         provide that construction on any renovation project funded under the grant shall not commence prior to the date specified in the grant agreement;

 

4)         provide that institutions shall contract annually with external auditors to conduct an audit of the expenditure of grant funds provide under this program; to verify the eligible gross square feet upon which the grant is based; and to verify that funds were expended pursuant to the grant agreement and not for sectarian purposes.  The audits shall be conducted annually until such time that all grants funds have been expended or refunded to the State, and certified reports of such audits shall be filed annually with the Board of Higher Education;

 

5)         provide that all funds remaining at the end of the period of the grant agreement, or any funds that are spent for purposes not listed in the grant agreement shall be returned to the State of Illinois; and

 

6)         comply with the terms of the Illinois Grant Funds Recovery Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1985, ch. 127, pars. 2301 et seq.).

 

Section 1035.60  Funding Formula

 

a)         Grants will be determined by allocating the appropriation for this program among eligible institutions in accordance with a formula based on the ratio of the individual applicant institution's eligible gross square feet to the combined total of all applicant institutions' total eligible gross square feet.

 

b)         The eligible institutional gross square feet used in calculating the grant amount shall be determined by the Board of Higher Education as provided for in the definition of "eligible gross square feet."

 

c)         The amount listed in the application for a grant by the institution for proposed renovation projects should equal or exceed the grant amount determined under the formula in this Section.  If the amount for proposed renovation projects is less than the grant amount calculated by this Section, the institution's grant will be reduced accordingly.

 

Section 1035.70  Audit Guidelines

 

a)         To fulfill audit requirements in Section 1035.50(b)(4), institutions shall contract with an external auditor who is registered as a public accountant by the Illinois Department of Registration and Education.  The cost of the audit is an authorized use of grant funds.

 

b)         The auditors shall obtain copies of the following grant documents:  the institution's application; the certified grant agreement; a copy of the most recent Board of Higher Education Statewide Space Survey document submitted by the institution; and a copy of this Part.

 

c)         The auditors shall verify the claim of eligible gross square feet.

 

d)         The auditors shall verify the expenditure of funds as provided for in this Part, and shall ensure that funds were expended on projects listed in the grant agreement.

 

e)         The auditors shall verify that renovation of sectarian facilities has not been supported by grant funds.

 

f)         The auditors shall provide an audit to the Board including a description of the tests performed and the audit findings.

 

g)         Refunds shall be made to the State by the institutions for the following reasons:

 

1)         Grant funds not expended;

 

2)         Grant funds expended for purposes not covered under the grant agreement.

 

Section 1035.80  Construction Grant-Elmhurst College (Repealed)

 

(Source:  Repealed at 11 Ill. Reg. 5202, effective March 12, 1987)

 

Section 1035.101  Purpose

 

The purpose of this Part is to provide for the distribution of other designated grants to nonpublic institutions of higher learning for purposes as appropriated under the Build Illinois Program.

 

(Source:  Added at 11 Ill. Reg. 5202, effective March 12, 1987)

 

Section 1035.102  Other Designated Grants

 

a)         Prior to the award of any funds under this category, the institution shall:  

 

1)         provide to the Board of Higher Education program and scope statements for the project setting forth parameters for the programmatic use, activities and functions related to the project.

 

2)         sign a grant agreement with the Board of Higher Education which agreement shall:  

 

A)        describe the purposes of the grant;

 

B)        specify how payment shall be made, what constitutes permissible expenditure of the grant funds, and the financial controls applicable to the grant;

 

C)        specify the period of time for which the grant is valid and during which the grant funds may be expended by the institution;

 

D)        provide that all funds remaining at the end of the period of the grant agreement, or any funds that are spent for purposes not listed in the grant agreement, shall be returned promptly to the State of Illinois.

 

b)         The institution shall contract annually with external auditors to conduct an audit of the expenditure of grant funds provided under this program and to verify that funds were expended pursuant to the grant agreement.  Certified copies of such audits shall be filed annually with the Board of Higher Education until such time that all grant funds have been expended or returned to the State of Illinois.

 

c)         No other Sections of this Part shall apply to these other designated grants.

 

(Source:  Added at 11 Ill. Reg. 5202, effective March 12, 1987)