This article summarizes the formal motions and recorded outcomes from the Oct. 15, 2025 meeting of the Senate Education Appropriation Subcommittee.

Key committee actions and outcomes

1) Approve line-item performance measures for public education (as presented; unchanged from Oct. 2024). — Approved unanimously.

2) Approve inclusion of programs in APB Table 3.1 into the public education base budget (as presented). — Approved unanimously.

3) Approve inclusion of programs in APB Table 3.2 into the base with the technical changes identified by staff (e.g., program renaming, moving items into a new technology contracts line item). — Approved unanimously (as amended during the meeting).

4) Withhold from the base budget — IT Academy and software licenses for early literacy — pending further review; retain ongoing funding in the subcommittee allocation for prioritization in the 2026 general session. — Approved unanimously.

5) Create a new State Technology Contracts line item and reassign specific technology-related contracts and initiatives into that line for transparency and performance tracking. — Approved unanimously.

6) Withhold from the base the career-and-technical education administrative/program items listed in APB Table 3.3 pending the USBE internal audit; staff recommended retaining ongoing funding in the subcommittee allocation (this recommendation was later adjusted by subsequent motion described below). — Recommended by staff; committee actions followed below.

7) Motion by Senator Ann Millner to move CTE student organizations and the career-and-technical education categories from 'withhold' to 'include in base' with direction to review and adjust in the 2026 session after the USBE audit. Recorded opposition was logged for Senator Fillmore and Representative McPherson. The chair declared the motion passed. — Motion carried (2 recorded nays; rest in favor).

8) Legislative intent motion: direct the State Board of Education to use $500,000 of an existing $10,000,000 student information system appropriation to contract with vendors and pilot data connectivity between LEA SIS platforms and state systems (Utreks, UCIMS) to support future interoperability and reporting. — Approved unanimously.

9) Motion to authorize staff to prepare the public education base budget bill and associated bill language as usual for subcommittee consideration and session. — Approved unanimously.

Recorded nays and abstentions
- Recorded nays in the Millner CTE motion: Senator Fillmore (no), Representative McPherson (no). No abstentions were recorded on motions where roll-call specifics were stated in the transcript; multiple motions were recorded as unanimous in committee.

Notes on vote records and process
- For several motions, the committee recorded unanimous approval; the transcript did not include a member-by-member roll call for those items. Where the transcript records roll-call details (the CTE inclusion motion), the no votes were named and transcribed.
- Staff repeatedly stated that "withhold" recommendations retain the underlying funding in the subcommittee's allocation; withholding does not mean immediate removal of funds, but rather deferral of formal inclusion pending audit findings or additional analysis.

Ending: Committee chairs and staff will carry the approved motions, technical changes, and withheld-item decisions into the 2026 budget preparation and will seek to reconcile technical corrections and audit findings during the session.