Procedure of district school boards with reference to proposals for issuing bonds.

It shall be the duty of the district school board to plan the school financial program of the district so that, insofar as practicable, needed capital outlay expenditures can be made without the necessity of issuing bonds. Whenever the district school board proposes an issue of bonds or has received any petition proposing the issuance of bonds, as provided in s. 1010.40, the said board shall forthwith proceed as follows:

(1) The district school board, after considering recommendations submitted by the district school superintendent, shall determine whether in its opinion the projects for which bonds are proposed to be issued are essential for the school program of the district.

(2) If the proposed projects are deemed essential by the district school board or if the proposed projects are rejected in whole or in part, the district school board shall, if practicable, prepare a plan for carrying out the projects, or at least part of the projects, with current funds which have been or can be set aside for that purpose.

(3) If the district school board determines that any portion of the projects cannot be carried out so that all costs can be met from the proceeds of a special district millage voted for that purpose or from district current funds that are not needed for salaries of teachers or other necessary expenses of operating the schools or from such funds that can reasonably be expected to be available by the time the projects are completed, or cannot be completed on the basis of a loan against district current funds, approved in accordance with s. 1011.14, the district school board shall then determine the amount of bonds necessary to be issued to complete the projects as proposed for the district and shall adopt and transmit to the Department of Education a resolution setting forth the proposals with reference to the projects and the proposed plan for financing the projects, said resolution to be in such form and contain such information as may be prescribed by the State Board of Education. If the Department of Education shall determine that the issuance of bonds as proposed is unnecessary or is unnecessary in the amount and according to the plan proposed, and shall notify the district school board accordingly, the district school board shall then amend its resolution to conform to the recommendation of the Department of Education, and no further action shall be taken for a period of at least 1 year on the proposal for a bond issue unless, within 30 days thereafter, a petition signed by at least 35 percent of the qualified electors within the district is received by the school board requesting that an election be called to vote bonds for the purposes set forth and in an amount which shall not exceed the amount of bonds proposed by the district school board. If such a petition is received by the district school board, as provided herein, or if the resolution proposing a bond issue has been approved by the Department of Education, the school board shall then proceed at its next ensuing meeting to adopt a resolution authorizing that an election be held for the purpose of determining whether bonds shall be issued as proposed.