The State Department of Education may accept applications by school districts for the construction of facilities and the purchase of essential furniture and equipment, under a pilot project to maintain regional programs for physically exceptional children. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish standards with respect to the regional programs for the pilot project which shall include, among other things, the curriculum to be offered, the area to be served, and the supervision and instruction with respect to the programs.

Of the school district applicants which meet the standards established, the State Department of Education may designate not more than four school districts to receive apportionments as part of the pilot project to maintain regional programs for physically exceptional children. The pilot project pursuant to this act shall begin with the 1972–1973 school year and shall terminate at the end of the 1974–1975 school year. The State Department of Education shall provide for state evaluation of the pilot project.

With respect to school districts selected as part of the pilot project, the State Allocation Board may approve applications and make apportionments pursuant to

Section 16196, notwithstanding that the school district is serving a district or districts with an average daily attendance in excess of 8,000. In any school year in which percent or more of the pupils in average daily attendance, as determined by the county superintendent of schools, and served by the facilities are not pupils from districts other than the applicant district, the repayment for the succeeding fiscal year shall be an amount which would have been payable if the district had been required to repay percent of the apportionment over that period.

The districts participating in a pilot project may include in interdistrict attendance agreements the cost of making repayments in the same proportion to the total repayment as the number of pupils enrolled from each district bears to the total number of pupils enrolled.