House Education Committee backs bill letting K‑12 coordination council hire researchers, approves $120,000 appropriation

Summary

The House Education Committee gave a due‑pass recommendation and referred Senate Bill 2262 to appropriations after testimony that the K‑12 Coordination Council needs explicit authority and modest funding to contract for multi‑district studies, with supporters saying $120,000 will allow a small number of studies but $250,000 would be preferable.

Senate Bill 2262, which would authorize the North Dakota K‑12 Coordination Council to enter contracts for outside studies and provides a $120,000 appropriation, received a due‑pass recommendation from the House Education Committee and was re‑referred to the Appropriations Committee after a unanimous voice roll call.

Supporters told the committee the change clarifies the council’s authority to hire consultants for studies that exceed the council’s internal capacity. Senator Ryan Brownberger, who introduced the bill on behalf of the K‑12 Coordination Council, said the request is intended to let the council “enter into contracts with researchers to do studies” that are too large for members or small subcommittees to handle.

The bill matters because the council meets to identify duplication, replication and areas for innovation across agencies that serve public education;…

House Education Committee backs bill letting K‑12 coordination council hire researchers, approves $120,000 appropriation

Summary

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