Nevada subcommittee approves transfers to preserve governor’s per-pupil base, members raise special-education concerns

The joint subcommittee on K‑12, Higher Education and Capital Improvement Projects voted May 7 to close the Nevada Department of Education’s Education Stabilization Account (account 2032608) and to transfer $115.7 million from the Education Stabilization Account into the Pupil Centered Funding Plan (account 2032609) to meet the subcommittee’s funding intent for the 2025–27 biennium. The measures passed after committee discussion and updated fiscal modeling presented by Legislative Counsel Bureau fiscal staff.

The funding moves matter because the subcommittee intends to keep the governor’s recommended statewide base per-pupil amounts of $9,416 in fiscal year 2026 and $9,486 in fiscal year 2027. Fiscal analysts told the panel the updated model reflecting the subcommittee’s recommendations requires $115,700,000 in additional funding over the biennium to hold those base amounts statewide.

James Malone, fiscal analyst for the Legislative Counsel Bureau, told the subcommittee the updated pupil-centered funding model shows $58.8 million needed in fiscal 2026 and $56.9 million in fiscal 2027, for a biennial total of $115.7 million. Malone said the updated tables show a net reduction in projected adjusted base per-pupil funding versus the governor’s amended recommendation (a $28.1 million decrease in fiscal 2026 and a $27.9 million decrease in fiscal 2027), with offsetting increases in weighted categorical funding and auxiliary funding. Malone also said the comparison to the governor’s amended budget shows a $38 million reduction in total state education fund revenues excluding net proceeds of minerals and a $47.2 million reduction when those net mineral proceeds are considered.

Assemblymember Backus pressed fiscal staff on how the funding formula produced decreases in average per-pupil special-education amounts for some districts while charter schools show increases in special-education enrollment. Backus noted the model projects Nevada public charter schools’ special-education enrollment rising from 5,892 in fiscal 2025 to about 7,007 in fiscal 2026 — roughly a 1,200-student increase — and asked whether applying only a 2% roll‑up to prior-year base amounts reduces the effective per-pupil allocation. Malone confirmed the explanation: the subcommittee’s agreed 2% roll‑up is applied to each local education agency’s base and, because of the large enrollment increase among charter schools, the effective multiplier for the charter category falls to 0.39, reducing the average per-pupil figure for that group.

Backus also drew attention to Nevada’s statutory 13% cap on counts used for special-education weighting in some school districts, saying that cap reduces the number of students counted for weighted special-education funding in places such as Humboldt School District (Backus cited a projection of 584 students with individualized education programs, which would be reduced to 411 when the 13% cap is applied). Backus suggested the commission on school funding examine the formula and caps during the interim because movements in enrollment and weights can cause fluctuation across districts and charter schools.

On a motion to close the Department of Education’s Education Stabilization Account budget (account 2032608) consistent with the subcommittee’s pupil-centered funding plan recommendations, the subcommittee approved the motion with recorded opposing votes from Senator Buck and Senator Stone. The panel then approved a motion to provide $115.7 million to the Pupil Centered Funding Plan by transferring that amount from the Education Stabilization Account (option b in the decision box). That motion passed with a recorded nay from Senator Buck.

Fiscal staff also presented two additional closing items tied to the 2025 K‑12 education bill. The first gives authority to transfer general fund appropriations for the Pupil Centered Funding Plan between fiscal years of the 2025–27 biennium with governor approval upon recommendation of the director of the Governor’s Finance Office; the staff recommendation states any advance or permanent transfer, if needed, from the Education Stabilization Account should be used prior to general fund transfers between fiscal years, and any transfers made into fiscal 2026 should be amended after fiscal 2026 closes to reflect actual collections and expenditures. The second closing item would add language to the 2025 K‑12 education funding bill prescribing the Graduate (GRAD) score as the identifier for at‑risk pupils unless the State Board of Education adopts a regulation to the contrary. The subcommittee approved both closing items as presented.

Votes at a glance: the motion to close account 2032608 passed (recorded nays: Sen. Buck, Sen. Stone); the motion to transfer $115.7 million from the Education Stabilization Account to the Pupil Centered Funding Plan (account 2032609) passed (recorded nay: Sen. Buck); the two additional closing items (authority for intra‑biennium transfers and GRAD score as at‑risk identifier) were adopted as presented with no recorded opposition in the transcript.

The subcommittee closed the meeting with no public commenters on the call. Chair Sen. Marilyn Dondero Lopez thanked staff for their work and adjourned the subcommittee for the 2025 session.