Education funding panel weighs tiered thresholds, documentation and quarterly payments for special education

CONCORD — The House Education Funding Committee met in a work session to consider three related bills aimed at reshaping how the state helps school districts pay for costly special-education services.

Representative Ladd, chair of the Education Funding Committee, opened the meeting by saying the committee would examine HB 1557, HB 1563 and HB 1835 together because they contain overlapping language addressing special-education funding. "All these bills have to do with special education and the funding of special education and the design of the formulas that support that funding of special education," he said.

Why it matters: Committee members said rising catastrophic special-education costs are straining district budgets. Current estimates discussed at the hearing put roughly 85% of many special-education costs on local districts, with the state and federal grants covering the remainder. Lawmakers said they want to preserve services while limiting the unplanned, unbudgeted burdens that fall on small districts.

What the draft would do: Ladd walked members through a draft that removes an absolute state cap and replaces it with a tiered, dollar-based structure. Under the chair’s draft, districts would be liable for a first band (example figure used in the draft:…