Board approves USDB request to seek $2 million for pupil transportation amid projected enrollment growth

The Utah State Board of Education approved a USDB legislative funding request enabling the Utah School for the Deaf and Blind to secure up to $2,000,000 in additional pupil transportation funding for the 2025–26 legislative session to cover anticipated new routes created by enrollment growth.

USDB leadership described the request as a technical, budgetary step to allow the agency to bill the pupil transportation fund for actual increased route costs should projected student growth materialize. Superintendent Joel Coleman said federal special education law (IDEA) requires USDB to transport campus students curb‑to‑curb and that the agency’s transportation costs rise as routes and student counts increase.

Coleman and Deputy Superintendent Scott Jones told the board the $2,000,000 is not new recurring money that was previously in the base budget; last year the legislature allowed USDB to use a $2,000,000 surplus from a driver‑education fund as a one‑time transfer to cover an immediate shortfall. That one‑time transfer was not carried forward in the draft base budget for the next fiscal year, staff said; the new board action asks the legislature to include authority to fund up to $2,000,000 for next year if actual route costs require it.

“We were able to get a $2,000,000 surplus in the driver’s ed fund last year and it plugged the hole for 24–25,” Coleman said. “That $2,000,000 wasn’t carried forward by the legislature into fiscal year 25–26, so this request allows us to bill up to that amount and receive that transfer if needed.”

Officials described the practical difference between district transportation funding and USDB: districts are paid from pupil transportation allocations using prior‑year miles‑and‑minutes data, a system that can lag; USDB operates on contract and route estimates, and the agency must fund routes in advance to meet its legal obligation to transport enrolled students.

Deputy Superintendent Jones and Carl Empey (director, fiscal) explained that USDB’s contract with a transportation provider included a 2.5 percent inflation factor plus an estimate of additional route expense; total pupil transportation costs were projected higher than the draft appropriation without an inclusion of the one‑time transfer. Jones said last year’s one‑time driver‑ed transfer was intended to be a temporary fix and that the legislature will need to identify ongoing authority or additional one‑time funding to close the gap if projected growth continues.

Board members pressed staff for enrollment detail. USDB officials reported 51 new admissions year‑to‑date and noted students often enroll at natural breaks (spring/summer/winter); they estimated about 80 new students could enroll by year‑end, a projection that drives route estimates. Carl Empey confirmed USDB’s self‑contained December count increased by 18 students year over year, and staff said the legislature will expect evidence (SCRAM/self‑contained counts) that justifies any additional appropriation.

USDB financial manager Vicky Summers told the board that for the five periods ending Nov. 30 the agency had recorded revenues of $21,400,000 and expenditures of $23,600,000, producing a $2,200,000 shortfall caused by advanced payments for pupil transportation totaling $2,340,000. She reported USDB received $4,140,000 for transportation on Dec. 2, which resolved the deficit in the December report.

The motion to approve the USDB legislative funding request for up to $2,000,000 for pupil transportation due to growth was moved and seconded and then passed on a recorded vote; board staff said they will provide additional contract and enrollment detail to the board and the Legislative Fiscal Analyst’s office before the session.

Why it matters: USDB is statutorily required to provide door‑to‑door transportation for enrolled campus students; rapid enrollments in self‑contained programs raise operating costs for contract transportation and place timing pressure on appropriations. The board authorized the request to give USDB the authority to bill for these projected costs and to provide documentation the legislature will require.