Front-funding is the process by which a district elects to proceed with a project before state assistance funding is available, assuming the financial risk that the funding may not be awarded. State assistance funds are released annually in July, at which time districts are notified whether their project(s) will receive funding.
A district may front-fund a project if it can certify that it has sufficient financial resources to cover the full cost of the project should state funding not become available. Front-funding allows the district to proceed with bidding and construction before the annual July release of state assistance funds.
If a district is dependent on the state's share of project funding, the project cannot be front-funded (and is therefore considered non-front-funded). In that case, bidding and construction activities must be scheduled to occur after the state assistance funds have been released.
What the "(1)" Means
For front-funded projects whose SCAP funds have not yet been released, OSPI issues a D-6(1), D-8(1), and D-10(1) in place of the standard D-6, D-8, and D-10. The "(1)" designation indicates that the project has been authorized to proceed under the front-funding provisions, but the project's SCAP funds have not yet been released. Once the state assistance funds are released, OSPI issues a standard D-10, replacing the D-10(1), to confirm that the project's SCAP funds have been secured. The "(1)" designation also authorizes the project to proceed with applicable milestones that would otherwise require the state funds to have been released.