Quick Glance: State by State School Siting Policies

Prohibited Sites: Policies that forbid sites a school district can use for school projects due to health or safety concerns with regard to transportation routes, transmission routes (e.g. pipelines, power lines), point sources of pollution, prior land uses, natural hazards, and other general environmental conditions.

Siting Factors:  Policies that direct or suggest how school siting officials should evaluate potential school sites in relation to the site’s proximity to transportation routes, transmission routes, point sources, prior uses, natural hazards, and other general environmental conditions.  This category is distinguishable from the “prohibited site” category in that the policies listed here do not categorically exclude a site from consideration, thus giving school districts greater discretion as to where to site schools.  

Environmental Evaluation for Site: Policies that require sponsors of school projects to evaluate environmental conditions at proposed school sites and environmental impacts of school projects.  Only those states having policies that specifically address school sites or school projects are included in this section.

Remediation:  Policies that provide for site remediation measures or standards developed specifically for the clean up of contaminated school sites. This section does not address cleanup standards for specific hazardous substances other than those levels established specifically for school sites; rather it surveys general remediation measures for school sites.

Funding Provisions:  Policies that provide funding to reimburse school districts for construction costs incurred specifically for environmental evaluation and/or remediation of site, as opposed to funding generally for site acquisition or preparation.  Also includes policies that provide funding to cover staff positions to oversee remediation of contaminated school sites.

Public Participation:  Policies that require public hearings and/or public comment periods regarding potential school sites; the formation of school siting committees or other committees charged with selecting school sites composed of members of the public; other policies whereby the public becomes involved in the site selection process.  Excluded from consideration were requirements to place school construction projects before voters for approval.

Information Available:  Policies that require information about potential school sites to be made available to the public during the school site selection process regarding environmental investigations and conditions at potential school sites.

Form Available:  Forms for Site Evaluation and Remediation that are available online. These forms are used to evaluate environmental conditions and develop clean up plans at potential school sites in these states. (Available in the Summary Document at www.childproofing.org.)