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Senate boosts school funding in Minimum School Program update
Summary
Senate Bill 212, amending the Minimum School Program, passed after floor debate. Sponsors said the bill adds roughly $5 million in new money plus increases for vocational programs and targeted support for low-wealth districts, raising the WPU and addressing special-education funding gaps.
The Utah Senate approved S.B. 212, an amendment to the Minimum School Program, increasing state support for districts and targeted programs. Sponsor Senator Barlow told colleagues the bill puts roughly $5 million of new money into the K-12 system in addition to adjustments for growth and cost-of-living increases; vocational programs would receive about $2 million more and targeted funding for poorer districts would be boosted.
Barlow said the Weighted Pupil Unit (WPU) would rise and estimated the net program would increase the per-WPU guarantee by about 5.8 percent in the bill's calculations. Senators asked whether classroom-size funding was locked to classrooms rather than administrative uses; the sponsor said the committee had tied those dollars tightly to reduce class sizes and that the committee intended the appropriation for teacher salaries and classroom needs.
Questions also focused on special-education funding; sponsors estimated the bill would move coverage toward roughly 90 percent of special-education cost (from a lower prior-year level). The body moved the bill under suspension of the rules and passed it by roll-call vote; the measure was sent to the House for further action.
Next steps: passage in the House and inclusion in the final appropriations package are the expected follow-up items; sponsors signaled coordination with the Appropriations Committee and supplemental budgeting where appropriate.
