(a) After the initial year of approval and for the next three years of operation as a private career school, renewal of the certificate of authorization shall be required annually.

(b) Following the fourth year of continuous authorization, a renewal of the certificate of authorization, if granted, shall be for a period not to exceed five years and may be subject to an evaluation pursuant to subsection (e) of § 10a-22b, provided no private career school shall operate for more than five additional years from the date of any renewal without the completion of an evaluation pursuant to subsection (e) of § 10a-22b.

(c) Renewal of the certificate of authorization shall be granted only upon (1) payment of a nonrefundable renewal fee to the Office of Higher Education in the amount of two hundred dollars for the private career school and two hundred dollars for each branch of a private career school, except that, any renewal fees paid on and after the effective date of the regulations adopted pursuant to § 10a-22k, shall be in the amount specified in such regulations, (2) submission of any reports or audits, as prescribed by the executive director or the executive director’s designee, concerning the fiscal condition of the private career school or its continuing eligibility to participate in federal student financial aid programs, (3) the filing with the executive director of a complete application for a renewed certificate of authorization not less than one hundred twenty days prior to the termination date of the most recent certificate of authorization, and (4) a determination that the private career school meets all the conditions of its recent authorization, including, but not limited to, at the discretion of the executive director, evidence that such school is current on its financial obligations and has adequate financial resources to serve its current students, and the filing of documentation with the executive director that the private career school has a passing financial ratio score as required by 34 C.F.R. § part 668, as amended from time to time.

(d) If the executive director, or the executive director’s designee, determines, at any time during a school’s authorization period, that such school is out of compliance with the conditions of authorization under sections 10a-22a to 10a-22o, inclusive, and any applicable regulations of Connecticut state agencies, the school may be placed on probation for a period not to exceed one year. If, after the period of one year of probationary status, the school remains out of compliance with the conditions of authorization, the executive director may revoke such school’s certificate of authorization to operate as a private career school pursuant to § 10a-22f. During the school’s period of probation, the school shall post its probationary certificate of authorization in public view. The Office of Higher Education may publish the school’s probationary certificate of authorization status.

(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 10a-22a to 10a-22o, inclusive, the executive director may authorize the extension of the most recent certificate of authorization for a period not to exceed sixty days for good cause shown, provided such extension shall not change the date of the original certificate’s issuance or the date for each renewal.

(f) After the first year of authorization, each private career school shall pay a nonrefundable annual fee to the private career school student protection account in the amount of two hundred dollars for the private career school and two hundred dollars for each branch of a private career school, except that, any annual fee paid on and after the effective date of the regulations adopted pursuant to § 10a-22k, shall be in the amount specified in such regulations. The annual fee shall be due and payable for each year after the first year of authorization that the private career school and any branch of a private career school is authorized by the executive director to offer career instruction. Such annual fee shall be in addition to any renewal fee assessed under this section.

(g) Each private career school shall keep financial records in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles. An annual financial statement detailing the financial status of the school shall be prepared by school management and reviewed or audited, or, for a nonaccredited school annually receiving less than fifty thousand dollars in tuition revenue, compiled, by a licensed certified public accountant or licensed public accountant in accordance with standards established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. A copy of such financial statement shall be filed with the executive director on or before the last day of the fourth month following the end of the school’s fiscal year, except in the case of a nationally accredited school recognized by the United States Department of Education, in which case such financial statement shall be due on or before the last day of the sixth month following the end of the school’s fiscal year. Only audited financial statements shall be accepted from a nationally accredited school. Upon a nonaccredited school’s written request, the executive director may authorize, for good cause shown, a filing extension for a period not to exceed sixty days. No filing extensions shall be granted to a nationally accredited school.

(h) The failure of any private career school to submit an application to the Office of Higher Education for the renewal of a certificate of authorization on or before the date on which it is due may result in the loss of authorization under § 10a-22f. The executive director of said office may deny the renewal of such certificate of authorization if there exists a failure to file such renewal application by the date on which it is due, or the end of any period of extension authorized pursuant to subsection (e) of this section.