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Legislative Update A Communication for Parents and Education Supporters in SEE Districts |
April 3, 2009 |
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If this is your first Legislative Update from SEE - Welcome! | |
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If this communication was forwarded to you, sign up to receive it directly by clicking on the box below: | |
What's Happening at the Capitol
Previously, the three players - the House, the Senate and the Governor - announced their budget proposals. This week the Senate Education Committee released SF1348 - The Education Omnibus bill. It is expected that the House will have their education funding omnibus bill out within the next week or so.
With the Senate cutting 7% and the House keeping education funding flat, the bills will vary greatly in funding and policy. Both bills will follow the same path through the House or Senate. They will proceed through numerous committees and then to their respective floor for a vote. An Education Conference Committee will then be convened with select members of both the Senate and the House education committees. The Conference Committee must reconcile the House and Senate versions into one final education omnibus bill. At each stop, the bills can (and usually are) amended. Thus, these bills will certainly evolve. | |
The Senate Education Omnibus Bill
The Senate target was a 7% reduction to education funding. After adding in the state stabilization funds from the federal stimulus, the committee needed to reduce funding by 3%.
The committee decided to cut on a per pupil basis rather than through the formula. This decision would increase the funding disparity and results in the lowest funded school districts seeing a 4.6% drop in their funding while the higher funded districts would only experience a 2.2% drop. Amendments were offered in both the Education and Finance Committees, including one instigated by SEE, that would have made the reductions based on a uniform percentage rather than per pupil so all districts would see the same percentage drop in total revenue. These amendments failed.
Following are some of the provisions in SF1328 - The Senate Education Omnibus Bill:
- Cuts funding to school district by approximately $270 per pupil for each of the next two years (actual cuts vary among districts from about 2.2% to 4.6%)
- Defines the minimum school year in hours rather than days thus allowing school districts the ability to increase or decrease the days of the school week
- Includes provisions to align state special education mandates to the federal requirements
- Establishes a fully equalized Consolidated Levy that would combine and replace the unequalized equity, operating capital, Q-comp and transition levies
- Strikes the maintenance of effort in the Safe Schools Levy and includes other mandate reductions
- Provides an alternative path for diploma to students that failed the Math Grad test
- Includes provisions to tighten sponsorship and other regulations for charter schools
- Eliminates the hand scoring portion of state tests to reduce cost
- Funds Summer of Success pilot program to provide remedial help to struggling students who are entering 8th grade
- Provides funding for Minnesota Virtual Education Program
- Caps integration revenue
- Reduces funding to the Department of Education by 3%
- Limits aid to non-public schools for textbooks and specific health services
- Adds language to increase instruction and assessments of reading strategies at the college level for student's pursuing a teacher licensure
- Provides an alternative path for teacher training and licensure
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What You Can Do Communicate with your legislators. Decisions will be made that will impact our children and their schools for years to come. The Senate in particular needs to know if their proposal of a 3% CUT to education is supported by their constituents. It's as easy as writing a simple short email letting them know how important education is to you. Click here to see who represents you.
Visit the capitol. Face to face interaction is the most powerful communication tool and will make a huge impact with your legislators. You could sit in on an education committee meeting then stop by your legislator's office. If you are able to come to the capitol, don't hesitate to contact me and I can help arrange short meetings with your legislators. I would be happy to accompany you. Meeting parents and education supporters and helping them negotiate their way around the capitol is one of my favorite things to do. |
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If you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Working together, we can make a difference.
Deb Griffiths
Director of Communications and Community Outreach
Schools for Equity in Education
612-309-0089
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Bills Heard This Week
S.F. 1328 Stumpf Miscellaneous early childhood education and family, kindergarten through grade 12 and adult education provisions modifications and appropriations.
In the House . . .
HF2033 (Faust) Research-based professional development funding provided for the St. Croix River Education District, "response to intervention" problem solving included, money appropriated. HF1046 (Mariani) Minnesota reading corps program established, and money appropriated. HF1177 (Garofalo) Early graduation achievement scholarship program established, money appropriated. HF1702 (Davnie) Grants authorized for the concurrent enrollment programs in the same manner as advanced placement and international baccalaureate programs, and money appropriated. HF751 (Benson) School districts authorized to create site-governed schools, and money appropriated. HF1127 (Eastlund) National Guard and reserve member pay differential clarified for teachers. HF214 (Bly) School boards authorized to form business entity solely for wind energy projects, and production tax exemption provided. HF1179 (Mariani) Omnibus K-12 policy bill.
HF2008 (Persell) Pupil miles transported component added to the general education revenue formula.
HF1856 (Swails) School districts authorized to report actual costs instead of allocated costs for contracted services, field trip costs clarified, resident district involvement broadened when a student is place in another district for care and treatment, maximum weight of type A-I school bus increased, and seat back and tailpipe equipment standards modified.
HF425 (Hilstrom) School district integration revenue formula modified.
HF2051 (Newton) School integration revenue provisions modified. |
Upcoming Scheduled Education Committee Meetings
These committee meetings were current when published but schedules are very fluid at the legislature. If you plan on visiting a committee meeting, verify the agenda by clicking on the links below.
In the Senate . . .
None scheduled at time of publication. Click on the link above for updated information.
TUESDAY, April 7, 20092:45 PM Room: 10 State Office Building Chair: Rep. Mindy Greiling Agenda: HF181 (Thissen) MinnesotaCare eligibility provisions modified. HF2224 (Marquart) School district authority modified to issue and sell certain general obligation bonds without voter approval, and levy authorized for certain other postemployment benefits. HF2183 (Swails) South Washington County; ISDN 833 Center for the Arts grant funding provided, money appropriated. K-12 Education Policy and Oversight
TUESDAY, April 7, 20098:30 AM Room: Basement State Office Building Chair: Rep. Carlos Mariani Agenda: HF1080 (Norton) Comprehensive scientifically based reading instruction definition clarified, prekindergarten through grade six teachers requirements made, reading instruction assessment created, and Board of Teaching rules legislative review provided. (information only) |
Committee Deadlines
Deadlines Set: It may seem like minutae, but the legislative deadlines often play a huge role in how the business of the legislature unfolds, especially near the end of session. This year, with the major budget challenges facing the state, the deadlines will likely take on even greater importance.
The deadlines are as follows:
First Deadline--Friday, March 27: Last day for policy committees to act favorably on bills in the house of origin (in English, last day for Senate policy committees to act on Senate Files and House policy committees to act on House Files).
Second Deadline--Tuesday, April 7: Last day for policy committees in either body to act favorably on bills or companions of bills that met the first deadline in the other house (in English, House policy committee may act upon HF XX if SF YY met the first deadline in the Senate).
Third Deadline--Thursday, April 16: Last day for House and Senate budget divisions to act favorably on omnibus education funding bills (This is the one the education community watches most closely, as Senator Stumpf and Representative Greiling will have to have the omnibus K-12 bills out of their divisions no later than this day).
Fourth Deadline--Wednesday, April 22: Last day for Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee to act favorably on an omnibus appropriations and tax bills.
Fifth Deadline--Thursday, May 7: Conference committee reports on omnibus appropriations and tax bills must be reported to the floor. This is new for this year and will give the Legislature nine working days to pass their major funding and tax bills and send them to the Governor for signature or veto. | |
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