Senate education subcommittee advances array of budget provisos; debates NIL, SARA role, Palmetto Excel funding

A Senate education subcommittee met to reconcile and consider a slate of budget provisos and amendments affecting K-12 programs, charter schools and education grants. Members approved several changes, deleted a controversial charter-school funding request and carried over one staffing-reduction amendment for later consideration.

The actions affect a range of items in the draft education budget, from prohibiting name-image-likeness (NIL) payments for secondary students to clarifying when district-selected benchmark assessments can affect final grades. Committee members also debated whether SARA (the Statewide Agency referenced in the hearing) should remain the administrative home for a rural teacher recruiting incentive and whether line-item funding for Palmetto Excel — a charter-run adult education program — should be continued.

Why it matters: The subcommittee’s votes will shape how state education dollars are administered and which programs receive continuing support; several measures change the state’s role in program oversight and in how local districts may use certain assessments or services.

Most significant actions and outcomes

• NIL in high schools — The panel approved language amending a previously adopted proviso to make explicit that the budget does not authorize students in secondary schools to earn compensation for the use of their name, image or likeness (NIL). The amendment restates the subcommittee’s prohibition on compensated NIL activity at the high school level.

• Rural…