(a) For the 2018â19 fiscal year, the sum of fifty million dollars ($50,000,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the commission to establish the Local Solutions Grant Program to provide one-time competitive grants to local educational agencies to develop and implement new, or expand existing, locally identified solutions that address a local need for special education teachers. This funding shall be available for encumbrance through June 30, 2023, and available for liquidation through June 30, 2028. (b) (1) A grant shall be up to twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) per teacher participant that the identified solution proposes to support, matched by that local educational agency or consortium on a dollar-for-dollar basis. Grant program funding may be used for local efforts to recruit, develop support systems for, and retain special education teachers that include, but are not limited to, teacher career pathways, signing bonuses for newly credentialed teachers who earn an education specialist credential, mentors for existing teachers, professional learning communities, service awards, teacher service scholarships, student debt payment, living stipends for newly credentialed teachers who earn an education specialist credential, or other solutions that address a local need for special education teachers. (2) (A) A teacher participant who receives a teacher service scholarship, signing bonus, or student debt payment shall agree to teach at a school within the jurisdiction of the grant recipient and work as an education specialist serving a caseload of pupils who receive special education services in a special education setting for four years, and the teacher participant shall have five years to meet that obligation. (B) A teacher participant who fails to complete the service obligation described in subparagraph (A) shall reimburse the sponsoring grant recipient the amount of grant funding received as a teacher service scholarship, signing bonus, or student debt payment. The amount to be reimbursed shall be adjusted proportionately to reflect the service provided if the teacher participant taught at least one year, but less than the required four years, at the sponsoring grant recipient. (C) If a teacher participant is unable to complete a school year of teaching, that school year may still be counted toward the required four complete school years if any of the following occur: (i) The teacher participant has completed at least one-half of the school year. (ii) The employer deems the teacher participant to have fulfilled the teacher participantâs contractual requirements for the school year for the purposes of salary increases, probationary or permanent status, and retirement. (iii) The teacher participant was not able to teach due to the financial circumstances of the sponsoring grant recipient, including a decision to not reelect the employee for the next succeeding school year. (iv) The teacher participant has a condition covered under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 2601 et seq.) or similar state law. (v) The teacher participant was called or ordered to active duty status for more than 30 days as a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States. (D) If the commission determines or is informed that a teacher participant who fails to complete the service obligation described in subparagraph (A), the commission shall confirm with the grant recipient the applicable grant amount to be recovered from the teacher participant and the grant recipient. The amount to be recovered shall be adjusted proportionately to reflect the service provided if the teacher participant taught at least one year, but less than four years, at the sponsoring grant recipient. (E) Upon confirming the amount to be recovered from the grant recipient pursuant to subparagraph (D), the commission shall notify the grant recipient of the amount to be repaid within 60 days. The grant recipient s
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