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Committee hears competing views on mandate relief bill covering kindergarten age and special-education transition
Summary
Lawmakers heard competing views on HB 7076, a mandate‑relief package that would let local school boards set early‑admission kindergarten rules and would change the cutoff for special‑education services; district officials welcomed local flexibility, advocates warned the proposal risks inequity and could harm students with the highest needs.
Lawmakers and witnesses debated HB 7076, a multi-part mandate-relief bill that would allow local boards to adopt early‑admission kindergarten policies instead of a single statewide waiver system and would alter the age at which students exit special-education services.
Supporters including the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education and many superintendents said allowing districts to choose whether to admit children who have not reached age 5 by Sept. 1 would reduce administrative confusion and let local leaders apply consistent rules inside their districts. “The change reverts the language back to what existed prior to the age change,” said Matt Conway, superintendent of Derby Public Schools, who told the…
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