The 2007 General Assembly is now in session
February 9, 2007
House and Senate budget negotiators will be appointed by the middle of next week and have until February 20 to reach a compromise spending plan for the remainder of the 2006-2008 budget.
The House Education Committee meets on Mondays at 9:00 a.m. in House Room C and Wednesdays at 8:30 a.m. in the Appropriations Room. The Senate Education and Health Committee meets on Thursdays at 9:00 a.m. in Senate Room B. Sub-committees will meet periodically throughout the session. Click here for a schedule of weekly meetings.
Budget:
The House and Senate money committees released their respective amendments to the introduced 2006-2008 budget this past week. Each chamber subsequently approved its budget on Thursday. A conference committee of senior legislators will meet to hammer out a compromise spending plan before the session adjourns on February 24.
Overall, the budget endorsed by the House decreases direct aid to public education by $6.0 million in FY 08. The Senate budget increases state funding by $8.7 million in FY 08. Here is a rundown of the major proposals:
Pay raises—Both the House and Senate propose a 3% pay raise for school teachers, effective December 1.
Retirement benefits—The House and Senate budgets both fund an increase in the retired teacher health insurance credit from the current $2.50/month to $4.00/month for each year of creditable service (no cap on the years of service). This is the same level of the health care credit for retired state employees. The House sets aside nearly $6 million for state costs of this change, while the Senate earmarks double that amount. Localities will be required to pay their share of the costs
Governor’s initiatives— The House rejected funding proposed by the Governor for establishing pre-school pilot programs and expanding early intervention reading and Algebra readiness initiatives and redirected it to other uses. The Senate rejected funding proposed for the Algebra readiness initiative, put pre-school pilot program money into the existing preschool initiative, and endorsed the early intervention reading proposal. The House also creates a reserve for one-time start-up costs or expansion of existing pre-school programs.
Other programs—Using nearly $5 million from at-risk program monies, the House funded various other initiatives, including $500,000 for a Center for Teacher Quality and Educational Leadership to serve as a professional development facility focusing on teacher quality and educational leadership for schools not meeting SOL benchmarks. Also funded was a one-time allocation of $300,000 in for mathematics specialists in five school divisions that are part of a National Science Foundation grant, and three $1 million grants to innovative programs that address the needs of at-risk students through academic programs stressing both academics and career and technical education.
SOQ Costs Study—As the legislature faces another SOQ rebenchmarking next year, along with various increased staffing proposals from the Board of Education, the Senate proposed language establishing a small joint subcommittee of legislators to review K-12 costs drivers and trends. A workgroup of staff from Senate Finance, House Appropriations, the Department of Education and JLARC has been tackling that issue this past year.
Click here for access to specific information about the proposed House and Senate budget amendments (State Budget)
Legislation:
Here’s an update on education-related bills that are being considered in committees of the opposite chamber, unless otherwise noted:
HB 1442 and SB 1147 expand the requirements for earning a standard diploma to include coursework that may lead to industry certification or occupational competency.
HB 1962 and SB 847 require testimony under oath during special education due process procedures (passed House and Senate).
HB 1727 requires school boards to either provide notice and an opportunity for parents to opt their children out of participating in school-sponsored clubs or advance written permission before a student becomes a member of a club.
HB 1843 creates income tax credits for business entities and individuals who contribute to eligible public school foundations and scholarship foundations.
HB 2271 requires school boards to annually review the school crisis plan (passed Senate Education and Health).
HB 2311 establishes a Public Charter School Fund for the purpose of establishing or supporting public charter schools (passed Senate Education and Health).
HB 2302 permits local school boards to enter into agreements with nonpublic schools to provide student transportation to and from the nonpublic schools.
HB 2542 and SB 1212 require the Board of Education (BOE) to request waivers from No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act provisions not an integral part of the state’s accountability and if such waivers are not received, to advise the General Assembly on continued state implementation of NCLB. They have passed the opposite chamber’s Education committee.
HB 2556 requires school divisions to ensure that enough textbooks and workbooks are available for students to be able to take them home for use.
HB 3201 requires parental notification when a student is removed from class for two or more consecutive days.
SB 1148 requires local school boards to include in their annual report to the BOE, the number of career and technical education completers that graduated (passed House and Senate).
SB 1197 requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to develop guidelines with the goal of eliminating foods containing trans fatty acids from public schools.
SB 1394 makes several changes to the Neighborhood Assistance Act program, including to provide that nearly all of a $4 million cap increase would be dedicated for education programs, and that $3 million would be provided for grants to private schools for students with disabilities.
SB 1419 establishes a tuition assistance grant program for students with disabilities, providing grants of up to $10,000/year to a private school for certain students with disabilities.
Please contact CEPI if you have any questions or need additional information about the 2007 General Assembly.
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