Committee weighs moving adult education funding from Agency of Education to Department of Labor for one year

A committee member urged routing this year’s adult basic education appropriation through the Department of Labor instead of the Agency of Education so the state can convene stakeholders and redesign the funding formula.

The speaker explained that last year’s statutory change and new funding produced unexpected formula changes by the Agency of Education; that change increased conflict with adult basic education providers. "Instead of having to worry about how the money gets handed out and how, I have language, here it but, I was gonna direct it through the agency of administration. But after with having conversations with joint fiscal, they suggested that, we send it to the Department of Labor and have labor, hand the money out," the committee member said. The aim is to let the players work together on a December report and a new formula.

Committee members discussed guardrails and cross‑agency coordination. One member suggested adding reporting requirements or other guardrails in conference committee if the funding route changes. Staff said there is at least roughly $1 million of federal adult education funds accounted for in current appropriations that would need to be considered if the appropriation move proceeds.

Why it matters: The change would be temporary and intended to buy time to develop a new, agreed distribution formula; it would shift administrative responsibility for distributing state adult education funds for the year.