§ 115C-597.  Administration.

(a) Rules and Regulations. - The Authority shall establish rules and regulations for the administration of the program, including the following:

(1) The administration and awarding of scholarship funds, including a lottery process for the selection of recipients within the criteria established by G.S. 115C-592(a), if necessary.

(2) Requiring a surety bond or insurance to be held by account holders.

(3) Use of the funds and the reporting of expenditures.

(4) Monitoring and control of spending scholarship funds deposited in a PESA.

The Authority shall provide recipients of scholarship funds with the annual list of defined educational technology for which scholarship funds may be used.

(b) Contract for Management of PESAs. - The Authority may contract with a private financial management firm or institution to manage PESAs in accordance with this Article.

(c) Annual Audits. - The Authority shall conduct annual audits of PESAs and may audit a random sampling of PESAs as needed to ensure compliance with the requirements of this Article. The Authority may contract with an independent entity to conduct these audits. The Authority may remove a parent or eligible student from the program and close a personal education student account for failure to comply with the terms of the parental agreement, for failure to comply with applicable laws, or because the student is no longer an eligible student.

(d) Administration Costs. - Of the funds allocated to the Authority to award scholarship funds under this Article, the Authority may retain the lesser of four percent (4%) of the funds appropriated or three million dollars ($3,000,000) each fiscal year for administrative costs associated with the program, including contracting with non-State entities for administration of certain components of the program. If the actual costs of administering the program exceed the funds authorized for administering the program pursuant to this subsection, the Authority may allocate unused funds set aside for administration costs from the Opportunity Scholarship Grant Fund Reserve pursuant to G.S. 115C-562.8(c) for the additional administrative costs of the Personal Education Student Accounts for Children with Disabilities Program.  (2017-57, s. 10A.4(a); 2021-180, s. 8A.3(l); 2023-134, s. 8A.13(c); 2024-40, s. 4(b).)