Finance committee hears concerns over special‑education services and transportation funding amid FY27 budget talks
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Summary
At the Feb. 12 finance committee meeting, board members raised community complaints that some IEPs may not be met and questioned transportation cuts; administration said the FY27 budget still includes about $150 million for special education and warned that transportation cuts of roughly $1.5 million would require route reductions or transfers from other funds.
Board members at the Anchorage School District finance committee meeting on Feb. 12 flagged community concerns about special‑education services and transportation funding as the district balances a large FY27 deficit.
A board member said public comment at recent meetings included claims that individualized education program (IEP) services were not being provided or were being reduced. "They feel like that's a legal... We just don't have teachers," the member said, summarizing parents' complaints about unmet IEP needs.
An administration representative told the committee the FY27 budget includes "about $150,000,000 in premium grants for special education," and characterized special education as one of the budget items with smaller reductions (roughly a 3–5% decrease overall). "We do have over $150,000,000 dedicated for students with special needs," the official said, and added the district will meet IEP obligations and is open to reallocating those dollars more effectively based on advisory‑group feedback.
Transportation was another substantive concern. A board member asked how the district would bridge a gap if transportation funding currently attributed to optional charter programs were separated; staff said the district had cut about $1.5 million from transportation earlier to reach a balanced budget and has not yet identified all offsets. Options would include reducing routes or transferring general‑fund money to maintain service levels.
Staff gave a rough estimate that the amount redirected for charter transportation would be about $1.1 million — roughly equivalent to funding for nine buses at current cost assumptions — and that a single bus had an estimated purchase price in staff discussion of around $130,000.
Board members said they will continue to press for clarity on these program impacts and for preemptive finance documentation showing prior allocations so the district can respond when critics question whether earlier funding commitments were honored.
The administration said it will follow up with advisory groups and provide additional detail on how premium special‑education funds are allocated and on transportation scenarios as the board weighs potential budget amendments.