Changes to the state aid funding formula won’t come in the forms of Senate Bills 191, 193 or 196 as the Senate Appropriations committee tabled the bills at Tuesday’s hearing, but the conversation each received is an encouraging step.

 

“It’s disappointing the bills won’t move on, but the conversation will,” Executive Director Wade Pogany said. “We approached legislative session with the idea that the conversation on improving funding for schools in the long-term needed to begin and it did, and it was well received.”

 

Senate Bill 191 – tabled on a 6-2 vote – proposed three percent increase to state aid and a shift in the current state-to-local effort ratio from 53.7 percent to 56.4 percent on the state side.

 

Senate Bill 193 modified the language of the state aid increase from “less” to “more” as it relates to schools receiving an annual percentage increase or the change in CPI-W. It was tabled on a 5-2 vote.

 

Senate Bill 196, which would have adjusted the state aid increase to general and special education based on the projected state general fund increase or CPI-W change, whichever is greater, was tabled on a 5-2 vote.

 

ASBSD supported and testified in favor of each bill.