(a) Supervisory unions, or administrative units not within a supervisory union, in order to provide services cooperatively, may at any annual or special meeting of the supervisory unions, by a majority vote of the directors present and eligible to vote, enter into a joint agreement to provide joint programs, services, facilities, and professional and other staff that are necessary to carry out the desired programs and services.

(b) The supervisory union may provide any authorized or required services by contract with any person, partnership, corporation, school district within or outside the supervisory union, or with other supervisory unions. The supervisory union may also provide such services to any independent school in the supervisory union area on such terms as the supervisory union board deems proper. Contracts shall be approved by the board and signed by the chair or the chair's designee. A contract may be for a term not to exceed four years renewable for successive four year periods.

(c) The expense of carrying on these shared programs, services, and facilities shall be allocated according to a plan mutually agreed upon by the participating supervisory unions and the Secretary of Education, including agreement on revision and adequate auditing procedures to allocate costs.

(d) Facilities constructed to house such shared programs and services when constructed with funds from the State School Building Aid Bond Account and attached to an existing building become a part of a new construction program. The school district within which the special facilities are located shall own the facilities subject to the mutual agreement on reversion.

(e) A central treasury may be established among the participating unions. Such central treasury will receive and disburse funds of participating supervisory unions. Funds shall be disbursed only on orders signed by at least one authorized member from each of the participating supervisory unions. The participating supervisory unions may jointly own personal property under their contract. (Added 1967, No. 70; amended 1969, No. 298 (Adj. Sess.), § 78; 1991, No. 24, § 11; 2013, No. 92 (Adj. Sess.), § 41, eff. Feb. 14, 2014.)