Education committee holds over vote on SB 1561, a special-education resources bill

The Education Committee met Friday, May 23, 2025, to consider Senate Bill 1561, a bill concerning resources for special education. Committee members moved to send the measure to the floor with a joint favorable recommendation but left the roll call open and recessed, holding votes over to 1:00 p.m.

The bill is part of parallel work in both chambers to revise funding and policy for special education. Representative Khan, co-chair of the special education effort in the House, said the version before the committee was not final and that “the final product … was done so with consultation with almost, I think, all stakeholders,” adding that language in the next version should address concerns parents raised. Senator Wilcox, co-lead on the select committee in the Senate, characterized the committee vote as a procedural step and said negotiation on the bill will continue in both chambers.

Committee members expressed differences about process rather than substance. Several lawmakers said they intended to vote against the committee motion as a process protest because the committee was considering an earlier draft rather than the updated version being negotiated. Other members spoke in favor of advancing the measure to allow continued work on a final bill. Representative Gucker, who said they received special education services, urged colleagues to keep the conversation open and supported advancing the proposal. Representative Comey asked whether identical House and Senate vehicles were necessary; staff and chairs said the intent is to reconcile the two priority vehicles into a single bill to be readied for floor action.

Clerk-led roll call began and recorded multiple individual votes before the meeting was recessed; the clerk announced the roll would remain open and that votes were being held over until 1:00 p.m. The chair asked members to continue discussions with the bill chairs and to consult with the governor’s office, appropriations staff and the State Department of Education as the text and funding arrangements are finalized.

Action taken at the meeting was procedural: a motion to give a joint favorable recommendation to the floor for SB 1561 was made and seconded, but the roll call on that motion was held open and the meeting recessed. Committee members were repeatedly told that negotiations on budget and financing remain ongoing and that the final bill may differ from the draft under consideration.

Committee leaders said they expect work to continue and hope to bring a final product to the floor in the coming days once budget negotiations and stakeholder consultations conclude.