Utah State Board of Education amends special-education carryforward language, directs recouped funds to USBE balances

The Utah State Board of Education voted to amend Rule R277-752, the provision governing special-education carryforward balances, and approved the rule on first reading as amended.

At a finance committee presentation to the full board, staff said the former "special education intensive services fund" portion of the rule has been eliminated and that the remaining text addresses a carryforward limitation for special-education funds. Deputy Superintendent of Operations Scott Jones told members the rule would be renamed to reflect the narrower carryforward issue and that the substantive fund no longer exists in its prior form.

During discussion, Member Davis asked whether the portion of carryforward that otherwise would be returned to the Uniform School Fund (described in the proposed language as amounts in excess of 20 percent) could instead be repurposed to help local education agencies (LEAs) — including temporary support for the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (USDB) — during transitions or fiscal shortfalls. Deputy Superintendent Jones said the board cannot unilaterally redirect statutory fund flows: any repurposing of MSP-related balances would require legislative action. "We would have to request that the legislature repurpose that money," Jones said.

Assistant Superintendent of Operations Deborah Jacobson provided background on the funding, saying, "This funding actually is part of the MSP basic program," and emphasized that the board’s authority over those balances is limited; the legislature typically makes decisions about systemwide uses of MSP balances.

To preserve the board’s flexibility while acknowledging legislative authority, members adopted an amendment (moved by Member Davis and seconded by Chair Norton) that removed the explicit reference to the Uniform School Fund and instead directs recouped carryforward amounts into Utah State Board of Education (USBE) balances "for future use as requested by the Board and determined by the Legislature." The amendment passed with 14 in favor and one abstention (Member Klein).

The board then voted on the underlying motion to approve Rule R277-752, as amended, on first reading and to forward it for a second and final reading; that motion passed with 14 affirmative votes and one abstention (Member Klein). The board’s action preserves the carryforward limitation in rule text while placing the recouped funds in USBE balances pending any legislative repurposing.

The board concluded the finance summary and returned to the next item on the agenda. The amended rule will come back for a second and final reading before it becomes effective.