House Education Committee advances multiple bills: English‑learner weighting, student aid and per‑pupil rates moved forward
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Summary
The House Education Committee adopted amendments and recommended due‑pass referrals for several bills, including changes to English‑learner weighting (House Bill 14‑94) and setting per‑pupil funding levels (House Bill 13‑69). Committee roll calls occurred on amendment acceptance and due‑pass recommendations.
The House Education Committee debated and voted on a set of education funding and policy bills, adopting amendments and recommending several bills be referred to the appropriations committee.
On House Bill 14‑94 (an English‑learner funding bill), representatives debated language that narrows the targeted proficiency levels and reduces the per‑pupil weight for a specified category of English learners. Representative Jonas described amendments that consolidated proficiency groupings and reduced a weight from 0.4 to 0.1 for a defined level of learners; committee staff provided a revised fiscal estimate for the amendment.
The committee voted to accept the amendment and later gave House Bill 14‑94 a due‑pass recommendation to appropriations. The roll calls recorded acceptance of the amendment and the due‑pass recommendation with 13 yes, 0 no, and 1 absent on the final due‑pass vote.
Representative Jonas and Department of Public Instruction staff (Adam Tesher) discussed fiscal consequences. Tesher provided a revised fiscal note for the amendment, which the committee described as driving the bill’s fiscal note to about $16.4 million under the amended weighting scenario. Committee members said the adopted changes produced an approximately 30% increase in the fiscal note from a previous baseline, subject to final per‑pupil calculations.
On House Bill 13‑69 (per‑pupil payments for the 2025‑27 biennium), the committee discussed setting the per‑pupil payment at $11,404 for 2025‑26 and $11,746 for 2026‑27, representing a 3% increase per year under the bill as presented. The committee moved a due‑pass recommendation and referred the bill to appropriations.
On House Bill 15‑17 (a student‑teacher scholarship program), the committee adopted two amendments clarifying eligibility and referencing the licensing authority, including language that applicants must not hold an initial or alternate access teaching license issued by the North Dakota Education Standards and Practices Board and clarifying that participating teacher‑preparation programs be North Dakota state‑approved. The committee approved those amendments on a roll call of 14 yes votes and then left the bill pending for further amendment work (members discussed possible repayment or "clawback" language but did not adopt that language in committee).
Other technical and capital‑finance language changes were also considered and amended on multiple bills during the meeting; several amendments were adopted on voice votes and subsequent roll calls. The committee repeatedly noted that several financial bills must be moved through the schedule to meet legislative deadlines.
Summary of roll‑call outcomes recorded in the hearing record: HB14‑94 (amendment accepted; due pass to appropriations 13‑0 with 1 absent); HB13‑69 (due pass to appropriations, roll calls recorded); HB15‑17 (amendment(s) adopted 14‑0 on amendment roll call).
