(a) Commencing with the 2009–10 school year, when funds become available for additional partnership academies within the total number of grants available for all partnership academies pursuant to Section 54691, the Superintendent shall issue grants for the establishment of partnership academies and shall give priority to the establishment of partnership academies dedicated to educating pupils in the emerging environmentally sound technologies until no less than one green technology partnership academy has been established in each of the nine economic regions established by the state. The academies may include, but are not limited to, technologies that educate pupils in the following areas:

(1) Energy audits that include a determination of energy savings.

(2) Retrofitting and weatherization activities that increase energy efficiency and conservation.

(3) Energy-efficient and water-efficient buildings.

(4) Retrofitting and installing energy-efficient household appliances, windows, doors, insulation, and lighting.

(5) Retrofitting and installing water and energy conservation technologies in existing homes, industrial buildings, and commercial and public buildings, to improve efficiency, including the use of energy and water management technologies and control systems.

(6) The design, construction, manufacture, sale, assembly, installation, and maintenance of energy-efficient technologies and renewable energy facilities, or the component parts of renewable energy technologies.

(7) Energy-efficient technologies or practices and renewable energy production, or the component parts of renewable energy plants and energy distribution, including energy storage; energy infrastructure, including transmission; transportation, including logistics; and water and wastewater, including water conservation.

(8) Performance and low-emission vehicle technology, automotive computer systems, mass transit fleet conversion, and the servicing and maintenance of those technologies.

(9) Pollution prevention and hazardous and solid waste reduction.

(10) Ocean, soil, or water conservation, or forestation strategies to mitigate climate change impacts.

(b) (1) The selection of school districts to establish the green technology partnership academies and the planning and development of the green technology partnership academies shall be conducted pursuant to the procedures and requirements established in Section 54691 for all partnership academies. The planning grants shall be made available for academies pursuant to this article from the total number of grants established pursuant to Section 54691.

(2) In the event a school district applies to convert an existing school program to a partnership academy and meets all the criteria for a partnership academy pursuant to Section 54692 and paragraph (3), the department, in coordination with the Superintendent, may provide that academy with first-year implementation funds, as appropriate.

(3) (A) In order to be eligible for funding pursuant to this article, the coursework and internship or preapprenticeship programs of the proposed academy shall focus on the use of environmentally sound technologies and practices. The proposed academy shall demonstrate this through its efforts to obtain input from environmental industry, utilities, and professional trade organizations.

(B) Staff development opportunities also shall be included in the academy plans to ensure that teaching staff has the opportunity to be educated in the use of emerging technologies and to become familiar with new materials and current practices in the field.

(c) The priority established in this section may be satisfied when the specified number of green technology partnership academies meeting the requirements of this article are funded by any of, or a combination of, funds appropriated for the establishment of partnership academies.

(Added by Stats. 2008, Ch. 685, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2009.)