Board hears legislative update: financial-literacy bill, FAFSA changes, federal education executive order and local funding risks

GREELEY, Colo. — At Monday’s Greeley-Evans School District 6 work session, district legal counsel and finance staff briefed the school board on a cluster of state and federal developments that could affect district operations and budgets, including a pending financial-literacy requirement, changes to FAFSA, a bill about communication devices in schools and uncertainty from a presidential executive order directing steps to close the U.S. Department of Education.

Nate Fall, the district’s in-house legal counsel, told the board that two new bills had been added to the district’s bill tracker: one on automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and another on dyslexia requirements, and he summarized movement on other measures the district is monitoring. On a high-priority item, he said a financial-literacy proposal has been amended and referred to appropriations and that the current bill text refers to “satisfactory completion of a course on financial literacy as defined by 22-32-135” as a condition of graduation.

Fall said the language is ambiguous about whether the requirement is a standalone course or can be embedded in an existing course and that the State Board of Education will be charged with developing standards and curriculum guidance. “There’s already a statute that includes the financial literacy standards. And right now, it’s recommended that we have curriculum that includes these financial literacy standards. Now it’s no longer a recommendation as a requirement,” he said.

On FAFSA, Fall said the bill was substantially amended to permit students to decline to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or for a school official to determine it is not feasible to complete an application; however, the expectation remains that all students would complete it unless they affirmatively decline.

Fall also reported that a bill described as banning cell phones in schools (characterized in the briefing as “communication devices in schools”) passed the House and was scheduled for senate education committee review; the district is already in compliance with the bill’s requirements as written.

Federal-level uncertainty dominated portions of the briefing. Fall summarized an executive order issued March 20 directing the Secretary of Education to take steps to facilitate closure of the U.S. Department of Education. He said Secretary Linda McMahon released a statement describing continued funding commitments for special education under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and other programs “not through the end of the fiscal year, September 2025.” But Fall cautioned that the larger effects on federal programs and administration were unclear and that the department has signaled it will issue additional guidance, especially on civil‑rights questions such as the use of race in school policies.

District grant and finance staff explained how federal funding flows and the potential operational implications. A district staff member said major grants such as Title I and IDEA are routed through the State of Colorado, which then distributes funds to districts; some federal grants are administered directly by an agency and the district works with that agency. The staff member said the district should prepare for potential disruptions and slower reimbursements and may need to temporarily “float” grant expenditures until reimbursements arrive.

Officials addressed program-specific concerns: the district’s 21st Century after-school programs operate at 11 schools and rely on federal funding that flows through the state. Staff said the program is being monitored closely. On Medicaid reimbursement for services to students, staff said some services historically reimbursed by Medicaid — for example, private duty nursing — could be at risk pending federal and state decisions, which could require the district to absorb additional costs.

The district finance lead said she is modeling possible outcomes under a speaker-of-the-house proposal to implement the new statewide school funding formula at a reduced rate (10% of the calculated change instead of the law’s scheduled 18%), which would still increase funding for the district but less than originally anticipated. The Joint Budget Committee’s revenue forecast was cited during the meeting as projecting a possible $1,160,000,000 gap in state revenues, heightening uncertainty for next year’s state budget and school finance.

Board members asked operational questions about how federal dollars are accessed and the timing of reimbursements. District staff recommended budgeting for level enrollment next year (i.e., not planning for growth) and said hiring for noncritical positions is being delayed while finance staff await clearer state and federal signals.

On charter-school oversight, the board discussed media reports and bills that would allow charter schools to be authorized directly by the Charter School Institute (CSI) rather than first seeking local district approval; staff committed to follow up with additional details.

No formal district actions were taken during the briefing; staff said they will continue to monitor bills on the district tracker and will provide electronic links and follow-up memos summarizing potential impacts and executive orders to the board.