House approves supplemental school funding; adds preschool special-education teachers to supply appropriation

The Utah House passed H.B. 382, the Supplemental Minimum School Program Finance Act, after floor debate and a successful amendment to extend a classroom-supply appropriation to preschool special-education teachers.

Representative Snow, sponsor of the bill, told members the weighted pupil unit (WPU) is increased to $2,280 — a 4.5 percent increase from the prior year — and that the budget includes roughly $5 million to fund capital outlay growth. Snow said one-time appropriations in the bill include $2.5 million for online testing and $5 million for enrollment-growth capital outlay funding. He also said the bill contains a coordinating clause tied to the Carson Smith Scholarship bill, which would reduce WPUs if that scholarship program is enacted and signed into law.

Representative Allen offered an amendment to add the phrase "or preschool handicapped" after references to "grades kindergarten through 6" so that preschool special-education teachers would explicitly qualify for the classroom-supply allowance. Allen argued that some districts had not provided the supply allowance to preschool special-education teachers in prior years because the law did not explicitly name them; he said the number of such teachers is small but the need is real. Representative Bigelow opposed the last-minute expansion beyond K–12 without fuller policy and fiscal review, but others, including Representative O'Looney, said these are public-school program teachers covered under existing law.

The amendment passed on the floor. Representative Snow waived summation on the bill, and final passage of H.B. 382 as amended was recorded by the clerk: 70 yes, 1 no. The bill was referred to the Senate for further consideration.

Next steps: H.B. 382 will go to the Senate; sponsors noted coordinating language tied to the Carson Smith Scholarship may change WPU calculations if that separate bill becomes law.