An Act Concerning The Provision Of Special Education In Connecticut.
HB 7277 is a broad special education reform bill that changes how Connecticut funds, prices, oversees, and delivers special education and related services. A central feature is the creation of a state-set rate schedule for direct special education services, including therapies such as speech, behavioral, and occupational services, with the Office of Policy and Management and the Department of Education collecting cost data, setting rates, and reviewing them at least every two years. The bill also limits 2025-26 tuition increases by charging entities, requires written contracts for reimbursement, and redefines “reasonable costs” so that, beginning in 2026, the term means the amount allowed under the state rate schedule rather than presumed actual cost.
The bill would substantially amend Connecticut’s special education statutes, especially sections governing local board obligations, reimbursement, private provider contracts, due process hearings, and approved placements. It creates new grant programs for special education offset funding, transportation reimbursement, in-district programming, educator/paraeducator training, and trauma/behavioral-health supports, while also adding reporting, auditing, licensure, staffing-notification, and data-disclosure requirements for school districts, RESCs, charter schools, and private providers. It further expands state oversight of private special education providers, modifies school construction aid to support in-district special education space, and establishes an Educational Ombudsperson to assist families and students.
The committee and vote history suggest generally favorable support for the bill’s overall goals, especially in the Appropriations Committee where it passed 42-10, though the earlier Education Committee substitute vote was narrower and showed more division. The bill’s structure indicates a strong policy emphasis on cost control, transparency, and shifting more services into district settings, which likely appealed to members concerned about rising special education expenses and accountability. At the same time, the close SED vote suggests there were meaningful reservations about the scope and pace of the changes.
The main points of contention appear to be the bill’s regulation of private special education providers and the extent to which the state should control pricing, reimbursement, and placement decisions. Provisions allowing the state to set rates, deny reimbursement above those rates, restrict providers from taking additional students if they overcharge, and require licensure and site visits could be seen as burdensome by private providers and some districts. Other likely flashpoints include the new reporting and audit requirements, the shift toward in-district programming, the transportation coordination mandate, and the bill’s detailed constraints on unilateral placements and hearing-officer procedures, all of which affect parents, districts, and outside providers differently.