Senate committee advances sweeping special‑education funding overhaul; committee substitute adopted, broad testimony spotlights costs and implementation

The Senate Committee on Education took up a comprehensive special‑education finance and policy package in the committee substitute for Senate Bill 568 (refile of earlier Senate Bill 1474). Committee members adopted the substitute and then heard several hours of invited and public testimony from commission members, superintendents, advocates and parents.

What the bill would do: Sponsor Senator Paul Bettencourt summarized the substitute as a sweeping rework of special education funding and services. Key measures described in committee testimony include: - Transition from a placement‑based funding model to a service‑intensity model organized into tiers (the substitute expanded the proposal from a 7‑tier to an 8‑tier model to include students who receive only speech therapy). The tiers pair with four service groups for targeted supports. - Embed a cost offset to help cover the expense of full and individual initial evaluations (witnesses said evaluation costs can range widely, with several district witnesses estimating $1,000–$5,600 per evaluation and multiple witnesses citing typical costs near $3,000). - Increase the special‑education transportation mileage reimbursement and double the college, career and military readiness (CCMR) outcome bonus for students identified as…