Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the State Legislation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board hears state legislative update after Senate fails to pass surplus package
Summary
The board’s legislative update noted a May 13 Senate defeat of a surplus package that would have shifted funds to public schools and property-tax relief; the School Boards Association urged leaders to return to the table.
At the start of its agenda the Stoughton Area School District board received a legislative update summarizing recent state activity and resources the School Boards Association has posted for districts.
Lisa Pugh briefed the board on a surplus-package proposal the presenter said the Legislature’s Senate did not pass on May 13. She cited a projected state surplus of about $2,750,000,000 and said a bipartisan agreement led by the governor and legislative leaders had proposed using surplus funds to increase special-education aid and lower property taxes; the Senate failed to pass that package. The presenter said the Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimated additional special-education aid of roughly $290,000 in 25–26 and $785,000 in 26–27 for the district’s area, and said opponents had argued the plan would spend down savings without guaranteeing future funding levels.
Pugh told the board that the School Boards Association has published materials to counter misleading narratives about public and voucher-school cost effectiveness and that the association is calling on the governor and legislative leaders to return to negotiations. She also flagged new school-safety trainings posted on the association’s website for summer sign-up.
Board members asked whether School Perceptions provides state-comparison benchmarks for the survey question about whether families would recommend the district; staff agreed to request comparable benchmark percentages from the vendor for the board to review.
No formal board action was taken on the state budget items at the meeting.
