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JFAC approves State Board of Education supplemental, workforce grant funding and language on credit mobility
Summary
The committee approved a $20,000 supplemental for a credit mobility grant, a FY2026 funding package including a $5 million public‑private workforce capacity grant and adopted language directing reports on credit mobility and outcome‑based funding.
The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee approved multiple actions affecting the Office of the State Board of Education (OSBE), including a supplemental $20,000 for a credit mobility grant, a fiscal‑year 2026 funding package that includes ongoing general fund support for a public‑private workforce capacity grant, and committee language requesting reports and setting criteria for awards.
Dr. Campbell, representing the State Board of Education, described the credit mobility supplemental as a one‑year grant that "runs from January of this year to December of this year, covering 2 fiscal years" and supports work to make student credits transferable between institutions.
The committee first voted to add $20,000 from the miscellaneous revenue fund as a supplemental for the credit mobility grant; that motion, moved by Representative Petzke and seconded by Senator Woodward, passed on a recorded roll call (committee announced a total of 17 ayes, 3 nays). Later, Representative Petzke moved a FY2026 program maintenance motion that included 1 FTP, $144,200 for a database engineer and a $5,000,000 ongoing general fund allocation "as trustee and benefit payments for the public private workforce capacity grant," among other line items. The representative characterized that motion as a compromise produced by the working group.
Senator Wintrow offered a substitute motion to increase the workforce capacity grant to $15,000,000; the substitute failed on a roll call (committee announced a total of 2 ayes, 18 nays). The original motion was then returned to and approved; JFAC stated the motion would go forward with a do‑pass recommendation.
Following the funding votes, committee members debated and adopted committee language on the record that: provides criteria for awarding the newly authorized funds; requests a report from OSBE on credit and transcript mobility; includes sections on outcome‑based funding (for four‑year institutions and community colleges); and establishes reappropriation authority with stated conditions and limitations. That language passed on a roll call with a committee tally of 14 ayes and 6 nays.
Senator Ward Engelking and other committee members described the language as the committee asking OSBE to "set some policy around these issues" without the committee itself setting policy. The committee recorded the language vote and the bill will proceed with a do‑pass recommendation to the next step in the process.
