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LFA recommends trimming categorical balances; USBE and board press to sustain key programs and request targeted increases
Summary
The Legislative Fiscal Analyst presented proposed reductions to the Related to Basic categorical budget and the Utah State Board of Education and board members urged sustaining or increasing funding for several line items at the Jan. 24 subcommittee meeting.
The Legislative Fiscal Analyst (LFA) presented a package of recommended reductions and reallocations for the Related to Basic categorical line item on Jan. 24. Rochelle Gunderson (LFA) outlined recommendations that include one‑time reductions to nonlapsing balances, closure of concluded programs and several ongoing reductions.
LFA recommended $1.3 million in one‑time reductions and $3.0 million in ongoing reductions targeted to reduce growing balances in a set of programs. Examples the staff cited included a one‑time reduction to the Beverly Taylor Sorensen (BTS) Elementary Arts Learning Program ($266,600) and to charter school base funding ($421,100). LFA also proposed a $1.5 million ongoing reduction to the digital teaching and learning component and a $1.5 million ongoing reduction to student health and counseling support as part of the balance‑reduction package. A separate set of recommendations would close out discontinued programs and recover $208,200.
LFA also proposed an ongoing reduction to a component of special education impact aid for large LEAs, proposing a 50% reduction in the LEA administrative component for LEAs that enroll more than 1% of statewide special education students (excluding LEAs in which special education students represent more than 75% of total enrollment). The LFA recommended an increase of roughly $26.65 million to continue the statutory phase‑in of the student at‑risk WPU add‑on (year five of a ten‑year plan), and it proposed other reallocations to clear unused balances.
Utah State Board of Education staff responded to the committee and urged the board to recommend sustaining ongoing funding for several programs the LFA had flagged for reductions. Dr. Leah Voorhees, USBE staff, said the board staff planned to recommend the board sustain ongoing funding for digital teaching and learning and for grants for professional learning, citing program outcomes and the risk of interrupting ongoing work if funding were reduced. USBE staff also recommended sustaining the student health and counseling support and special education impact aid lines and noted that some reductions could reduce program capacity at the district level.
Board members outlined priority requests the board will present to the Legislature. Cindy Davis, member and finance committee chair of the Utah State Board of Education, described a request to increase paid non‑instructional professional hours for educators, saying the proposal would add about 16 paid hours per year for participating educators. Davis said the increase would amount to roughly an additional 20 minutes per week of paid non‑instructional time for participating educators. The board also described ongoing funding priorities that include a grow‑your‑own educator pipeline (the board cited an ongoing request of $7.3 million in the board’s top‑10), a $3.0 million request for expansion of the Beverly Taylor Sorensen arts program that would add BTS teachers to additional elementary schools, and a requested expansion of educator supplemental salary coverage to include occupational and physical therapists who serve as licensed professionals on student teams.
Board member Randy Booth, who has an extensive background in arts education, told the committee BTS supports integrated arts instruction and said the program is widely valued by districts. Dr. Booth provided a brief summary of program benefits and noted the board will present more information to the committee and to the board later in the week.
Committee members raised policy questions. Representative Eliason asked about an earlier committee change that reduced a suicide‑prevention allocation; staff said balances in the student health and counseling program have grown and that $500,000 could be transferred from student health and counseling support to restore the suicide prevention allocation if the committee directed that action.
The committee did not adopt any LFA recommendations at the meeting; USBE staff said it will present formal recommendations to the State Board of Education at its next meeting and the board will decide whether to request sustained or increased funding for the highlighted programs.
