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Staff member: rising costs leave districts exposed under "circuit breaker" special-education funding
Summary
A staff member explained how rising per-student special education costs have outpaced stable state "circuit breaker" reimbursements, outlined FY26 threshold and reimbursement mechanics, and described a legislative push to lower the threshold and increase the reimbursement rate.
A staff member briefed attendees on the state'level "circuit breaker" program that reimburses school districts for unusually high special education costs, saying the program is intended to prevent a single costly placement from overwhelming a district's budget.
"The goal is to help districts cover the cost of, you know, high cost special education placements," the staff member said, and described the circuit breaker as analogous to a household circuit breaker that trips before a system is overwhelmed.
The staff member gave concrete FY26 figures: the claim threshold is $53,431. Using a worked example, they said that for an outside placement costing $150,000, the…
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