Transcript Highlights:

• before the education policy committee. before the education policy committee.
• Some of them educational, some of them not educational.
• Some of them educational, some of them not educational.
• . educated. educated.
• education teachers. education teachers. 500<02:49:01.200> special<02:49:01.520> education

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• education funding. education funding.
• this committee or uh, education this committee or uh, education education<01:27:38.960> committee
• Education freedom accounts, also referred to as education accounts or education savings accounts in other
• The Department of Education has said all education that's funded with public money is public education
• The Department of Education has said all education that's funded with public money is public education

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first heard Senate Bill 292, which would authorize a governor’s warrant to cover special education aid shortfalls from the education trust fund, and from the general fund if needed, so local school districts would not have to absorb prorated costs or raise local property taxes. Senator Lang said the bill was prompted by a prior $15 million special education funding shortfall caused by higher-than-expected catastrophic aid claims, including more qualifying students and the recent increase in the special education age limit to 22. He emphasized that the bill is intended to ensure the state meets its funding commitment and avoid shifting costs to towns. Members asked about how the bill interacts with House Bill 742 and House Bill 773, including whether the language should be merged or whether the state should fund 100% versus an 80% floor. Lang said he was open to improving the bill and to adding a study committee or performance audit on special education costs, but maintained that the state should not push costs to local taxpayers when it has available funds. The hearing on SB 292 was then closed, with no vote taken. The committee then opened Senate Bill 98, which would extend for five more years a tax credit program for donations to regional career and technical education centers. Senator Waters said the program has been successful in building partnerships between CTE centers and employers, especially through equipment donations that support training and apprenticeships. He cited examples including automotive, marine trades, and advanced manufacturing programs, and said the five-year extension would let lawmakers continue to review whether the incentive is working as intended. Several members questioned whether the credit is effectively a 100% subsidy and how the cap works. Waters and another member explained that the underlying program has an aggregate cap of $500,000 and that credits are prorated if requests exceed that amount; they also said the donations are primarily equipment, not cash. Some members raised concerns about whether businesses could also claim other tax deductions or credits, but the sponsor said the existing structure has been in place for years and has been revisited periodically. No vote was taken during the hearing excerpt provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• . >> Welcome to the Higher Education Appropriations Committee.
• Foundation out of the Department of Education.
• Simply to clarify, you wouldn't agree that that that the educational. >> Both the educational institution
• My other education focus Board membership has included the Education Market Association, which was founded
• Was Lee ensuring quality education persists.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Tony Monfalez from Future Focused Education.
• There are only four courses associated with education.
• night: CTE as a mechanism to prepare future educators.
• So, Future Focused Education facilitation.
• Educators, 77% of educators say this was enough to get kids back on track.

Transcript Highlights:

• The Committee on Elementary and Secondary Education will now come to order.
• So if we come to the Educator Committee, we're going to the Educator Committee, We play with everybody's
• If you didn’t know, in gifted education she was a gifted education teacher in Columbia way back when.
• There's five core courses in gifted education.
• specialized educational service that requires sustained investment to be effective Thank you. educational

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Education is extremely important to me.
• Higher education is different. It's different from public and private education.
• Education was a turning point for him.
• Higher education is different. It's different from public and private education.
• Education was a turning point for him.

Summary: The Appropriations Committee on Higher Education heard and approved two bills before moving into confirmation hearings for several university and college board nominees. CS/SB 1458 on apprenticeships and pre-apprenticeships was presented as a measure to improve consistency and transparency in local education agency partnerships, cap LEA administrative funding at 10% when applicable, and require public meetings and work papers for workforce funding model decisions. Support was noted from Associated Builders and Contractors, the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Foundations for Florida Futures, and Independent Electrical Contractors. The bill passed unanimously and was reported favorably. The committee then considered CS/CS/SB 1726 on higher education governance and presidential searches after adopting a delete-all amendment and a late-filed amendment defining the final group of presidential applicants as no fewer than three. The amended bill added provisions on trustee citizenship and residency/alumni eligibility, interim president succession planning, longer presidential contract renewals, limits on candidate polling by universities, syllabus posting, textbook/open-access material lists, and other governance and academic policy changes. Senators raised concerns about the minimum-three finalist requirement, interim president selection, trustee eligibility, and polling restrictions, while supporters said the bill would depoliticize leadership selection and improve transparency. The bill was reported favorably after the amendments were adopted. The committee then heard confirmation testimony from multiple appointees and reappointees, including nominees for FAMU, UNF, Pensacola State College, UWF, and UF. Most nominees emphasized ties to their institutions, student success, workforce development, military connections, and institutional growth. Several UWF nominees were questioned extensively about their votes for former chair Scott Yenner and his controversial comments about women and other groups; some said they were unaware of those remarks at the time of the vote and would not have supported him with that knowledge. Public testimony on UWF expressed concern about the nominees’ lack of higher education experience, their ties to the region, and the impact of Yenner’s views. The committee later voted to recommend a block of non-UWF nominees favorably, and it agreed to vote on the UWF nominees individually, with some remaining nominees deferred to a later hearing due to time.

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:21:46.640> and involved in their kids' education and involved in their kids' education
• Could the could the education.
• <00:34:20.560> We education committee chairman. We education committee chairman.
• We support our College of Education and training of the next generation of educators.
• We support our College of Education and training of the next generation of educators.

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The Interim Joint Budget Review Subcommittee on Education met with a quorum, approved the August 20, 2025 minutes, and then heard a discussion tied to Constitution Day and Kentucky’s constitutional duty to provide an efficient system of common schools. Chairman James Tipton reviewed the history of Kentucky’s model laboratory schools, postsecondary academy programs such as Gatton and Craft, magnet schools, virtual learning, and computer science opportunities, arguing that Kentucky has long expanded educational opportunity through different school models. He described model schools and academy programs as hybrid or innovative approaches that serve specialized student needs and noted that some of these programs receive state appropriations and, in some cases, tuition. Senator Steve West then gave a retrospective on school choice in Kentucky, beginning with the 2017 charter school law and explaining that Kentucky’s charter framework was designed as public-only to comply with the state constitution. He said charter schools have remained largely dormant in Kentucky and used that as context for Senate Bill 207, the School Innovation Act, which he said was modeled on a South Carolina approach. Under SB 207, a local school board can contract with a third-party entity to manage an existing school, receive SEEK funding, and seek waivers from certain state regulations in order to innovate, while retaining limits on items such as school safety and attendance rules. Members asked about how the new model differs from charter schools, whether schools could cherry-pick students, and whether teachers would remain district employees. West and Tipton said the bill is intended to keep the school within the public system, with the local district initiating the process and maintaining accountability through a time-limited contract that can be ended if the school fails to perform. They emphasized that the school would serve the existing student population rather than select students, and that teachers would remain district employees with their pensions and related contributions unchanged. Representative Brown raised concerns that exceptions and charters could leave lower-income children behind, while West responded that the bill is meant to expand choice for families who otherwise lack access and cited examples from other states where outside management and parental involvement helped turn around low-performing schools. No additional votes or formal actions were taken beyond approving the minutes.

Transcript Highlights:

• I've been in education my entire life.
• higher education.
• higher education.
• higher education.
• educational opportunities.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• these kids for special education aid. these kids for special education aid.
• education.
• education with no guardrails, right? education with no guardrails, right?
• education aid. education aid.
• education aid program. education aid program.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The subcommittee met for its third discussion on special education aid under retained bill 742, with the chair noting that no action would be taken at the meeting. The chair reviewed prior hearings on Medicaid and local special education funding shortfalls, saying the committee was trying to understand why districts are facing proration of special education aid and how to reduce unfunded costs. He raised a series of questions for the Department of Education about the Nessus system, eligibility and ineligibility, invoices and vouchers, audit procedures, reimbursement rates, out-of-state placements, and who enters data at the district level. Rebecca Fdet, director of special education services at the Department of Education, explained that Nessus is the statewide special education information system and that every child in special education must be entered into it. She said most districts use it to develop IEPs and track services, while six districts use it only as a data reporting tool. She described which fields are required, how the system connects IEP development to the financial section, and how districts submit invoices when seeking special education aid, court-ordered placement payments, or episode-of-treatment placements. She said the department reviews invoices against the IEP, pays only for allowable services, and uses a cap that notifies districts when they reach the annual limit. Members asked about who submits the information, how districts decide when to seek aid, and how costs are calculated for individual or group services. Fdet said the district, usually an administrative assistant in the SAU office, submits the documentation electronically, and districts decide when to track students for aid based on their own circumstances. She said reimbursement is based on actual costs tied to the IEP, with group services split among students, and that the department does not generally set rates for local services. The only rate-setting she described was for approved private special education providers, which submit annual cost spreadsheets for tuition rates. She also said out-of-state providers must be approved by their own state, and the department checks licensure and certification through monitoring and investigations if concerns arise. The department also described its monitoring process, called Program Approval and General Supervision Monitoring, or PAGS. Fdet said districts are reviewed on a six-year cycle, with more intensive review for districts needing assistance or intervention and fewer file requests for districts meeting requirements. She said the department can review up to 65 data points on an IEP and that districts must submit special education aid paperwork by July 31, with superintendent verification due by August 15. The meeting ended with continued questions about procurement, audit procedures, and how the department handles out-of-district and out-of-state placements.

Transcript Highlights:

• educators are treated.
• So, like Cherem Ma, she's in special education, so she would take a special education exam.
• educational Education how many educational assistants<01:34:42.719> and<01:34:42.920> part-time
• assistant one educational in educational assistant one educational assistant<01:39:53.119> 2<
• relating to educ relating to educ education<01:50:54.159> requires<01:50:54.639> the

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The joint Committee on Education and Committee on Public Safety and Military Affairs heard Senate Bill 422, which would authorize the Department of Education to award a high school diploma to qualified people whose schooling was interrupted by military service or wartime practices during World War II, the Korean War, or the Vietnam War. The Department of Education testified in support, noting a prior law that created the Kono diploma program before it sunset in 2020. Several members of the public also testified in support. Both committees later recommended passage of SB 422 without amendments, and the recommendation was adopted by voice votes. The committees then heard Senate Bill 530 on Braille literacy. The bill would establish Braille literacy as state policy, require Braille-related literacy assessments for eligible blind and low-vision students, authorize DOE rulemaking, create a Braille Literacy Resource Center, and appropriate funds. DOE and the Department of Human Services supported the measure, as did the National Federation of the Blind, Hawaii Disability Rights Center, and a blind testifier who described the importance of early Braille instruction. The Attorney General’s office raised concerns about statutory language requiring yearly assessments and suggested revisions so annual decisions remain with IEP teams. The committees voted to pass SB 530 with amendments, including the Attorney General’s suggested changes, and adopted the recommendation. The next measure was Senate Bill 532, which would allow school staff and agents trained by a licensed clinician to volunteer to administer medication to students in public schools under certain conditions and clarify who may prescribe such medication. DOE and Department of Health testimony supported the bill. The Attorney General recommended replacing the term “licensed clinician” with the defined term “health care professional.” The Hawaii Academy of Physician Assistants supported the bill but asked that physician assistants be included among providers who may prescribe medications for school administration. After questions about current school health aide duties and field-trip medication procedures, the committees voted to pass SB 532 with amendments, including the Attorney General’s terminology change, and adopted the recommendation.

Transcript Highlights:

• Is that in the Education Code?
• About special education dollars.
• For special education students coming not only from the designated special education dollars, but also
• Yes, the Department of Education does have contact with many Local Education Agencies (LEAs) who are
• Patel brought up today repeatedly is special education and the need for more robust special education

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Welcome to Senate Education. Thank you.
• I had the privilege of speaking at the House Education Committee when they heard... ...at the House Education
• Of Title 17, the Education Code, relative to early childhood care and education, provides for an early
• education, to provide relative to student identification, to require the Department of Education to
• education, to provide relative to student identification, to require the Department of Education to

Keywords: 974, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Regarding special education funding and possible special education funding models.
• ECSE special education, it's not the 4X threshold.
• Tesher's point, we as a multi-district special education unit—and I'm with a multi-district special education
• routes, and career and technical education routes.
• special education.

Summary: The committee met with a quorum, approved the March 4, 2026 minutes, and received a lengthy Department of Public Instruction presentation from Stanley Schauer Jr. on North Dakota student performance data in math and ELA, with comparisons between students with disabilities and students without disabilities. Schauer explained the assessment systems used, the 1% alternate assessment cap for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, the absence of 2019-20 data due to the pandemic, and how state standards are set by North Dakota educators. Members asked about cohort trends, the role of alternate assessments, grade-level patterns, and whether the state should focus more on reducing the novice category than on moving students from approaching to proficient. Schauer also discussed the new NDA Plus assessment, the state’s planned growth model, and the possibility of future breakdowns by disability category or by schools using science-of-math approaches. Special education educators testified that students with disabilities continued to receive services during COVID because of FAPE obligations, which likely helped limit learning loss, and emphasized that IEP teams focus on individual growth rather than only proficiency buckets. Committee members then shifted to special education funding and possible funding models. Brandon Bombach of Grand Forks Public Schools presented on the state aid formula, focusing on the special education weighting factor and arguing that the current formula does not adequately respond to growing student needs because it counts enrollment but does not adjust when the number of students with IEPs rises. He used examples to show that a district can have the same enrollment and receive the same weighting even if the number of students needing services increases. Members discussed whether the formula should be tied more closely to actual need and accountability, and the chair indicated that the committee would continue gathering data and ideas for a later meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• Because I was getting a dual master's degree in elementary education and special education, I decided
• and elementary education.
• quality education.
• For a future educator workforce that reflects the students and provides the highest quality education
• Athletics at higher education.

Bills: HB30, HB120, HJR1, SB210, SB306

Keywords: teacher residency, Teacher Residency Act, public schools, teacher preparation, educator pipeline, teacher recruitment, teacher retention, student teachers, apprenticeship, co-teaching, mentor teachers, residency stipend, teacher salary, level one teacher, charter schools, school districts, New Mexico education, teacher workforce, principal stipend, cohort model

Transcript Highlights:

• There's been a lot of change in education, which is sort of the name of the game in education, but. the
• I think we need more education assistants, and we need to fund schools and districts so that an education
• We should be asking educators how to educate because they're the experts as someone who's been in the
• I think education now is just hard.
• That are so vital to actually funding the education policy that makes for better education for all our

Transcript Highlights:

• their local level while also educating their local level while also educating them<00:38:02.880>
• educators who have been well educated educators who have been well educated and<00:48:10.480>
• but educators in general.
• Most educators do tons of work. My mom Most educators do tons of work.
• <01:08:24.480> Federal education laws, right? Federal education laws, right?

Bills: HF630, HF1435, HF1607

Keywords: short-call substitute, substitute teacher, substitute teaching license, pilot program, teacher shortage, education workforce, school district, charter school, Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board, PELSB, background check, paraprofessional, education support personnel, temporary license, substitute training, retaliation, teacher pay, daily substitute pay, Minnesota education law, education innovation

Transcript Highlights:

• Many things are education, as you know. You're an old educator yourself.
• She's an educator. Her parents are educators. Her siblings are educators.
• or early education.
• But most important is, from one educator to another educator, we have had discussions and also, you know
• and secondary education.

Transcript Highlights:

• the learning students and Educators the learning students and Educators choose<00:43:05.480>
• must invest in an inclusive education must invest in an inclusive education now<01:03:18.920>
• <01:05:36.880> and listen to us students Educators and listen to us students Educators and
• educate our community's future.
• > weeks ago in the education policy weeks ago in the education policy meeting<01:12:46.320> and

Bills: HF29, HF921, HF922, HF1048, HF1049

Keywords: railroad, infrastructure, transportation funding, environmental remediation, capital investment, HF921, tax increment financing, TIF, excess tax increment, school district aid, levy adjustment, property tax levy, education finance, Minnesota education aid, decertification, local government finance, school funding formula, state aid reduction, referendum equalization aid, debt service equalization

Transcript Highlights:

• FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.
• OR COMPLETERS IN CONTINUING EDUCATION ARE EMPLOYMENT.
• WORKFORCE EDUCATION STATE.
• THEY ARE PRESENTING AND DEALING WITH CAREER EDUCATION. THE FOCUS BEING CAREER EDUCATION.
• EDUCATION.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So we're at about $ education.
• we are not going to improve education we are not going to improve education funding<00:22:12.320
• as last educ uh legislative session. as last educ uh legislative session.
• deeply about ensuring quality education deeply about ensuring quality education for<00:27:20.159
• comprehensive approach for education comprehensive approach for education funding<00:27:28.799><

Keywords: 1191, senate, all