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Senate education committee unanimously advances House Bill 826 to direct more adult-education funds to local providers and allow paper testing
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Summary
The Senate standing committee on education voted unanimously to advance House Bill 826, which would require a larger share of state adult-education funding to be spent at the local level (Tipton cited an 85% target) and allow a paper-and-pencil testing option for high-school equivalency credentials; the committee also removed the McConnell Center from a separate civics-curriculum provision and placed HB 826 on the consent calendar.
The Senate standing committee on education voted unanimously to advance House Bill 826, which directs a larger share of state adult-education appropriations to local providers and permits a paper-and-pencil testing option for credentialing, committee members said during the session.
Representative James Tipton (House District 53), who presented the bill, said the measure responds to concerns from adult-education providers about shrinking local resources and access to testing in rural areas. "At least 85% of the funds that the state appropriates to the adult education program be used at the local level, and that would leave 15% for the state to do their administration," Tipton told the committee. He also said the bill would "allow an option for a paper test, a pencil and paper test" for students who cannot easily reach a testing center or lack reliable internet access.
Why it matters: Tipton and other supporters said shifting more dollars to local providers would put resources closer to students seeking GED or high-school-equivalency credentials, while the paper test option aims to improve access in rural or low‑connectivity areas.
Senator Neal questioned the basis for the 85% figure, asking whether it was grounded in a specific requirement or was arbitrary. "I just wanted to understand whether that was rooted into something specifically or, whether it was arbitrary," Neal said. Tipton responded that the 85% target was suggested by Gary Dawson, a retired adult-education teacher who testified to the sponsor in the House, and cited related federal guidance: "According to federal rules, any federal dollars that go into adult education, they require 82.5% of those dollars to go into actual programming," Tipton said. Tipton also told the committee he had heard concerns that the state-level staff overseeing the program had increased substantially in recent years—"there are 26 adult education programs, and there's a staff of 41 overseeing that"—and said the bill aims to ensure more funding reaches local providers.
Committee action and amendments: The committee first adopted a subcommittee change that removes the McConnell Center at the University of Louisville from a prior provision that had added that center and the Center of American Civics at the University of Kentucky to develop civics curricula. The committee then took the bill up for a motion to report out; Senator Reid moved the bill and Senator Thomas seconded. In a roll-call vote the committee recorded unanimous support (ayes recorded for Senator Carroll, Senator Givens, Senator Higdon, Senator Meredith, Senator Neal, Senator Rawlings, Senator Reid, Senator Thomas, Senator Tishner, Senator Wilson, Senator Wise and Chair West) and Chair West announced, "House bill 826 passes unanimously." The committee also adopted a title amendment and placed HB 826 on the consent calendar.
What the bill would and would not do: As presented, HB 826 would set a state-level allocation target for adult-education appropriations and create an alternative, paper-based testing pathway to address access issues. The sponsor described the 85% target as a sponsor-recommended figure modeled on an 82.5% federal programming requirement; the committee record does not show the bill text or fiscal details beyond the sponsor's description. The committee did not take further amendments on program-level implementation, and the bill was moved to consent for the next steps in the legislative process.
Next steps: With committee approval and placement on the consent calendar, HB 826 is positioned to move forward in the legislative process subject to subsequent scheduling and floor action.
