Correction: Elections Hearings Wednesday, March 13

In today's earlier post on school board elections bills, I stated the hearings were scheduled for this Wednesday, but incorrectly gave the date as March 14. Wednesday's date is March 13. I apologize for the confusion.

This week’s hearings and scheduled action; last week's recap

Several high-profile issues get a hearing in the Legislature next week, and school boards members are especially encouraged to consider speaking.  

School Board Elections

Senate Ethics, Elections and Local Government Committee has a hearing at 9:30 a.m., Wednesday, March 13 (with possible continuation to Thursday) on SB 211.  Like HB 2271, which received a hearing last month, the bill would move school board and municipal elections to the fall of even numbered years.

House Elections Committee holds a hearing at 1:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 13 on HB 2227. This bill would move school district primary elections to the first Tuesday of August (2015) in odd numbered years, and the general election would be the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of such years.  “Municipal” elections would be partisan elections, but statute changes specific to school elections do not seem to require the publishing of party affiliation with board election candidates as it does with municipal ones.

KASB opposes both bills.  Local school board members are strongly encouraged to testify on these measures.  Several local board members testified effectively on HB 2271, and others had expressed interest but were discouraged by last month’s winter storm.  A hearing on SB 211 had been scheduled, but was postponed due to the weather.  Contact KASB for assistance in testifying.

Concealed Carry of Weapons in Public and Private Buildings

Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee holds a hearing at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 15 on SB 186. The bill would allow individuals, with a license to carry a concealed hand gun, into state or municipal buildings unless the building has adequate security measures to ensure no weapons are carried into the building.  School districts are included in the definition of municipality.

On the House side, the Federal and State Affairs Committee recommended HB 2055 on Wednesday. This bill differs from SB 186 in that it exempts schools from the public building security requirements.  HB 2055 was also amended to allow school boards to permit employees to carry concealed weapons, even if the schools are posted to prohibit concealed carry.

KASB is neutral on HB 2055 because it leaves decisions on weapons policies to local school officials.  KASB will oppose SB 186 because it appears to require that boards either allow concealed weapons or adopt expensive security measures.  Concerned local school leaders are encouraged to testify or otherwise communicate with committee members and local legislators.

School Finance, Reserves and Efficiency Audits.

Senate Education holds a hearing at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, March 11 on HB 2261. This bill makes permanent the authority for districts to transfer funds from certain restricted accounts to general purpose accounts, subject to annual limits; and removes any limit on the contingency reserve fund, currently capped at 10 percent of the general fund.  KASB supports the bill.

Senate Education holds a hearing at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 12 on SB 224. This bill eliminates vocational, bilingual, non-proficient at-risk and virtual weightings, and requires prorating the at-risk weightings to achieve a base of $4,492. It is estimated that at-risk funding would be reduced by 31 percent.

KASB will oppose the bill because it eliminates or reduces several weightings specifically researched and designed to meet differential costs.

Senate Education holds a hearing at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 14 on HB 2349. This bill directs the Legislative Post Audit division to conduct three school district efficiency audits of different size districts each year.  KASB supports the bill.

Open Records Fees, Open Meetings

Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee holds a hearing at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 13 on SB 10.  This bill would prohibit school boards and other governmental bodies from charging staff time for producing open records upon request, and limit the amount that could be charged for copies.  KASB will oppose that portion of the bill.  It also requires that minutes be kept for public meetings under the Kansas Open Meetings Act.

High School Activities Association

House Federal and State Affairs Committee holds a hearing at 9 a.m. on Thursday, March 14 on HB 2197. This bill would require each league in the Kansas State High School Activities Association to have a board of directors composed of two directors chosen by the local boards (one employee, one non-employee).  It also amends selection of the executive board to allow legislative leadership to appoint members.

Working After Retirement

House Pensions and Benefits Sub-Committee is expecting to hold a hearing on HB 2308, probably on Monday, March 18. This bill is looking at the restriction of working-after-retirement language. The committee received testimony last week from Alan Conroy, executive director of KPERS.  Afterwards, sub-committee chair Rep. Jim Kelly, R-Independence said his hope was to have the full committee hear the bill. The committee is particularly interested in hearing from districts using a number of retirees.  Please contact KASB advocacy staff if you would be interested in testifying.

Planned legislative action this week

School Funding and State Revenue.  The House Appropriations and Senate Ways and Means Committees plan to finalize their proposals for supplemental appropriations this year and funding for state agencies, including K-12 education funding, for the next two years (FY 14 and FY 15).  To this point, both committees have maintained the Governor’s budget recommendations, which fund base state aid at $3,838 in FY 14 and $3,852 in FY 15; maintains level funding for Local Option Budget and special education state aid; uses state highway funds for partial funding of transportation weighting and special education aid; provides a formula increase for capital improvement aid and KPERS payments.

To fund that budget, the Governor proposed keeping the state sales tax at current rates and eliminating the state income tax deduction for mortgage interest.  As recommended by Senate Assessment and Taxation, HB 2059 would raise over $660 million for FY 14 and 15.  If the House and Senate fail to adopt new revenues, the state will have to either reduce spending significantly or spend down state general fund balances, or both.

Teacher Negotiations.  The House Commerce, Labor and Economic Development Committee on Friday completed two days of hearings on HB 2027, which would make changes to the Professional Negotiations Act recommended by KASB and the Kansas School Superintendents Association.  Final action in committee is expected today.  Most significantly, the bill would narrow the list of items which are “mandatorily” negotiable under current law.  KASB and KSSA testified the purpose of the bill is to give local boards and administrators more flexibility in areas such as teacher evaluation, discipline, attire and reduction in force, while maintaining the right of teachers to collectively bargain over compensation, amount of time worked and other “permissively” negotiated items.

KASB recommended several amendments yesterday to make clear boards must continue to negotiate with a single bargaining association for teachers.  The bill also gives boards more authority to provide additional compensation based on teacher performance or shortage areas.

Innovative Districts.  Both the House and Senate passed virtually identical bills (SB 176 and HB 2319) which would establish a process for a limited number of districts to be designed “innovative districts.” This would allow them to be exempted from most state school laws and regulations in exchange for higher student performance and completion standards.  The Senate bill allows up to 10 percent of districts (28) to become innovative districts; the House bill is limited to 10 districts. KASB supports both bills.

Independent Charter Schools. The House Education Committee is scheduled to take action Tuesday on HB 2320, which would allow the Kansas State Board of Education, Kansas Board of Regents, public and private postsecondary institutions, cities and counties to “authorize” public charter schools that would be independent of local school boards and exempt from most state laws and regulations. The Senate Education Committee held a hearing on a similiar version of this bill, SB 196, last Thursday.  KASB opposed both bill on two grounds.  First, the Kansas Constitution gives only the State Board of Education authority for "general supervision" of public schools, and requires that all public schools be "maintained, developed and operated" by locally elected boards.  Second, KASB presented evidence that state with more students in charter schools or more liberal charter schools do not have better educational outcomes.

Commercial Machinery Taxation. The House Taxation Committee passed out HB 2285 on Thursday on a voice vote.  The bill changes how commercial and industrial machinery and equipment will be defined, which will ultimately determine its valuation status and the money collected from the mill rate levied on it.  Although the numbers are still somewhat fluid, the state Legislative Research Department determined $11.6 million would not reach state coffers based on the 20 mill statewide levy.

What becomes more complicated is how the bill would affect the Local Option Budget distribution from the state, and how different districts will respond as it calculates the money they receive from its capital outlay levy.  There could also be an increase in a district’s bond and interest millage necessary to raise sufficient funds to make its bond payments.

Final comments indicated several representatives who would vote for the bill knew it would have ramifications for them as property taxes would likely go up for home owners and main street businesses.  It was also noted the committee, along with the $11.6 million hit to the SGF noted earlier, moved out a bill that had a fiscal note of $50 million, creating an additional $60 million cut the Appropriations Committee would have to address to balance the FY 14 budget.

Teacher Bargaining; Common Core; Guns; Innovation; Tax Policy

The Legislature returned from the four-day “turnaround” break Wednesday with a contentious hearing on teacher bargaining changes and several other high profile issues.  Next week’s schedule of hearings is also filling up and we will send a preview shortly.

Teacher Negotiations.  The House Commerce, Labor and Economic Development Committee began a hearing on HB 2027, which makes changes to the Professional Negotiations Act recommended by KASB and the Kansas School Superintendents Association.  Most significantly, the bill would narrow the list of items which are “mandatorily” negotiable under current law.  KASB and KSSA testified that the purpose of the bill is to give local boards and administrators more flexibility in areas such as teacher evaluation, discipline, attire and reduction in force, while maintaining the right of teachers to collectively bargain over compensation, amount of time worked and other “permissively” negotiated items.

KASB recommended several amendments yesterday to make clear boards must continue to negotiate with a single bargaining association for teachers.  The bill also gives boards more authority to provide additional compensation based on teacher performance or shortage areas.

The history of this bill began earlier this session with HB 2085.  KASB testified in support of some provisions that that bill, but did not support parts that would have made collective bargaining optional.  The new bill was drafted based on long-standing KASB policy positions on collective bargaining and a survey of school administrators.  The KSSA Board of Directors voted unanimously to support the bill.  However, it is strongly opposed by the Kansas National Education Association.  KNEA testified that the current system works well, that boards already have the authority to adopt “unilateral” contracts if they are not satisfied with negotiations, and that the new bill removes the teachers’ voice within districts.

The hearing will continue on Friday.  School leaders are strongly encouraged to communicate their views on this issue to members of the House Commerce Committee and to their State Representatives.

Concealed Carry.  The House Federal and State Affairs Committee voted yesterday to recommend HB 2055 after adding an amendment giving school boards specific authority to allow employees to have handguns in school buildings.  The measure also applied to colleges.  KASB believes that school districts essentially have this authority under current law, and the amendment does not require boards to adopt such a policy.  Other parts of the bill require most public building to allow concealed weapons to be carried if they are do not provide security measures at all entrances.  Although the final amended version of the bill is not available, that provision does not appear to apply to school districts.

Common Core.  The House Education Committee held a lengthy discussion on the issue of the Common Core academic standards yesterday.  A bill to prohibit the state and school districts from implementing the new standards, HB 2289, remains in committee but is not an exempt bill.  A briefing was held earlier this session, but no formal hearings have been scheduled on the issue.  Discussion on the same topic continues today.  The committee is scheduled to meet Friday, but no agenda has been announced.

Action Scheduled Today (Thursday, March 7)

Both the House and Senate are scheduled to debate virtually identical bills, SB 176 and HB 2319.  Both bills establish a process for up to 10 districts to be designed “innovative districts,” which would allow them to be exempted from most state school laws and regulations in exchange for higher student performance and completion standards.  KASB is supports the measures under the goal of establishing higher student completion standards and allowing more local authority for innovation.  Two school districts which have received waivers from the No Child Left Behind Act, Kansas City and McPherson, also testified in support.  The Kansas National Education Association was opposed the bills because school boards could (but re not required to) exempt themselves from laws dealing with teachers, such as collective bargaining and teacher due process or tenure.  The United School Administrators was neutral.

The Senate Education Committee holds a hearing on SB 196, which would allow the Board of Education, Board of Regents, public and private postsecondary institutions, cities and counties to “authorize” public charter schools that would be independent of local school boards and exempt from most state laws and regulations.  KASB will testify against the bill on two grounds.  First, the Kansas Constitution requires that all public schools are to be under the general supervision of the State Board of Education, and maintained, developed and operated by locally elected boards.  Second, there is no evidence that states with more expansive charter school laws have better student achievement; in fact, the opposite tends to be true.

The House Taxation Committee is expected to take final action on HB 2285, which changes the definition of machinery and equipment for purposes of taxation.  As introduced, the bill would significantly reduce the valuation of commercial and industrial property in certain counties.  KASB opposes the bill for the following reasons:

·         The bill would reduce revenues from the statewide mill levy for schools, requiring either additional state funding or reducing the base budget per pupil.

·         The bill would make certain districts much less wealthy in terms of assessed valuation per pupil.  This would make them eligible for more state local option budget aid, but because the LOB aid program is already over $90 million underfunded, funding would be reallocated among all districts receiving LOB state aid.

·         The bill would reduce revenues from capital outlay levies, especially in those districts where the new definition would have the greatest impact.

The exact fiscal impact of the bill would not be known until the affected property is reappraised.

Friday Webinar: Negotiations Bill (HB 2027) Explained; TurnaroundWrap-Up

The KASB weekly advocacy webinar Friday at 12:30 p.m. will focus on an explanation of the background and impact of the new bill concerning board negotiations with teachers, a subject likely to draw significant controversy both at the Statehouse and in local districts. Originally concerning an unrelated subject, HB 2027 was amended and reintroduced as a substitute bill addressing some of the issues previously contained in HB 2085, by the House Commerce Committee. The new bill was recommended by the committee Tuesday, but has been re-referred to the House Appropriations Committee, which makes it exempt from deadlines. It is expected to be sent back to the Commerce Committee for a hearing next week.

The new bill contains provisions based on KASB policies and a survey conducted by the Kansas Association of School Superintendents. KASB is preparing a full analysis of the bill that will be sent to Capital Update subscribers and discussed at Friday’s webinar, where we will also respond to questions.

The webinar will also review the status of education legislation as of Friday’s “turnaround” deadline for non-exempt bills to be passed by the first house. Relatively few education bills are moving through the process at this point. Here is a summary of yesterday’s action and today’s schedule.

On House Final Action today:

HB 2349 – School Efficiency Audits. Advanced to final action on a voice vote yesterday, the bill would require the Legislative Division of Post Audit to conduct three school district efficiency audits each fiscal year.

The school districts would be selected for audit by the Legislative Post Audit Committee, on a voluntary basis, at first. One small, one medium, and one large school district would be audited each fiscal year. The audited school districts would publish a summary of its audit report with recommendations on the district’s website as well as making the audit report available, free of charge, at the district office. KASB testified in favor of the bill.

HB 2221 – Equal Access for Teacher Associations. Also advanced on a voice vote, the bill would establish the Equal Access Act for professional employees' organizations. It would modify the Professional Negotiations Act by requiring all local boards of education to (1) Give equal access for all professional employees' associations to the employees' physical or electronic mailboxes; and (2) Allow equal access for all professional employees' associations to attend new teacher or employee school orientations and other meetings.

Local boards of education would not be allowed to designate any day or breaks in a school year by naming or referring to the name of any professional employees' association. The bill would amend the Professional Negotiations Act by making the Equal Access Act supplemental and part of that law. Changes in the Professional Negotiations Act would include expanding the definition of "professional employees' organizations" to include those existing for the purpose of professional development or liability protection. KASB did not take a position on the bill.

On House General Orders Today:

HB 2109 – Military Student Second Count. The bill would authorize a second count of military students on February 20 to determine the number of students enrolled in a school district to continue through the 2017-2018 school year. The authorization is set to expire at the end of the 2012-2013 school year. The bill has been non-controversial. KASB did not take a position on the bill.

HB 2222 – School District Bullying Policies. The bill would amend current law related to school district policies on bullying. Current law defines “bullying” as an intentional gesture or threat creating an intimidating environment for a student or staff member. The bill would clarify the definition of bullying to mean any threat by a student, staff member, or parent toward a student or by any student, staff member, or parent toward a staff member. The bill would define “parent” to include a guardian, custodian, or other person with authority to act on behalf of a child. The bill would define “staff member” to mean any person employed by the school district. The bill would require these changes be reflected in the school districts’ policies and plans to address bullying. KASB testified in favor of the original bill, which dealt only with staff members. KASB is reviewing the legal issues involving the inclusion of parents.

On Senate Final Action today:

SB 128 – Career Technical Education Incentives. The bill would amend the statute creating the Career Technical Education (CTE) Incentive Program. The bill would specify that a student’s accomplishment of obtaining an industry-recognized credential in one of certain specific occupations (a criterion for a school district or community or technical college to receive an incentive award) must be completed prior to graduation from high school or by December 31 immediately following graduation. Currently, the credential must be completed by graduation. KASB is supportive of the concept but did not testify on the bill.

On Senate General Orders today:

SB 171 – School District Accounting and Reporting. The bill would amend the Kansas Uniform Financial Accounting and Reporting Act. The bill would require each school district and the Kansas Department of Education (KSDE) to report on their respective websites the budget summary for the current school year, as well as actual expenditures for the immediately preceding two school years showing total net transfers and amounts spent per pupil by specific function, disaggregated to show the per-pupil revenue amounts from local, state, and federal sources. KASB testified in opposition due to provisions in the original bill that added significant new reporting requirements for student activities. Those provisions were removed in committee.

Bills “Below the Line” today:

Several education bill have been recommended by committee and placed on general orders but are not scheduled for debate. These include:

Innovative School Districts. Two very similar bills, SB 176 and HB 2319, would allow up to 10 school districts to be designed as innovative districts and granted exemptions from most state school laws and regulations, in exchange for adopting higher student completion requirements for college and career readiness. KASB supports both bills, which are exempt from Friday’s deadline.

HB 2059 – State Sales and Income Tax Rates. The bill, on Senate General Orders, contains a modified version of the Governor’s plan to extend the state sales tax at the current rate and eliminate the home mortgage interest deduction in order to avoid deep cuts in the state budget. It also provides further cuts in the state income tax in the future. The bill is exempt from deadline. KASB supports state tax policies to maintain funding for education.

HB 2232 – Teacher Liability Insurance. On House General Orders, the bill would require the State Board of Education, within appropriation limits, to purchase liability insurance for Kansas teachers. The bill would require the State Board of Education to coordinate the purchase of liability insurance with each school district in a cost effective and efficient manner. The bill is not currently exempt, and there are questions about the actual cost and impact of the proposal. KASB did not take a position on the bill.

HB 2280 – Celebrate Freedom Week. The bill would designate the week containing September 17 as “Celebrate Freedom Week,” during which public schools would be required to teach the history of the country’s founding, with particular emphasis on the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. The bill would require religious references in the writings of the founding fathers could not be censored when presented as part of the instruction. The State Board of Education would be responsible for adopting rules and regulations to require history and government curriculum that includes instruction on the meaning and context of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, major wars, and social movements in American history. The State Board of Education, along with other volunteers, would promote “Celebrate Freedom Week.” The bill is not currently exempt. KASB did not take a position on the bill, as most of the elements are already included in state curriculum standards.

Monday Wrap-Up: Innovative Districts, Vouchers, Reading, More

After two "snow days" and a weekend, the Legislature jumped back into action yesterday.  In meetings stretching from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, committees continued hearings and debated bills with this Friday’s “turnaround” deadline looming.  All meetings scheduled for today have been pushed back two hours as snow continues to fall in Topeka.  Here is a committee-by-committee report.

House Education:

Innovative Districts.  At its 7:00 a.m. session, the committee voted to recommend HB 2319 favorably on a voice vote.  The bill would allow up to 10 districts to become “innovative districts” with approval from the State Board of Education by setting higher student completion standards for college and career-readiness.  These districts could then exempt themselves from most state school laws by action of the local board.  KASB supports the bill.  It is opposed by the Kansas National Education Association because it would allow districts to be exempted from certain laws concerning teachers: continuing contracts, due process and professional negotiations.  The committee rejected amendments from Rep Valdenia Winn, D-Kansas City, which would have struck the provision allowing exemptions from most school laws, and from Rep Nancy Lusk, D-Overland Park, which would have removed exemptions from the three teacher laws.

Special Needs Scholarships (Vouchers).  After extensive debate, a motion to report HB 2263 failed on an unrecorded, but apparently 8-10, vote.  The bill would have established a state scholarship program for students with special education IEPs that would provide state money from school districts to be spent at private schools.  The bill was amended twice, but the discussion generally raised more questions than the one the committee could answer.  KASB strongly opposed the bill, raising concerns about its constitutionality, compliance with federal special education law, and financial impact on school districts.

Although the vote was not recorded, it appeared the committee members voting for the bill were: John Bradford, R-Lansing; Willie Dove, R-Bonner Springs; Amanda Grosserode, R-Lenexa; Kelly Meigs, R-Lenexa; Jerry Lunn, R-Overland Park; Ron Highland, R-Wamego; Shanti Gandhi, R-Topeka; and Dennis Hedke, R-Wichita.  Apparently voting against the bill were Diana Dierks, R-Salina; Nancy Lusk, D-Overland Park; John Ewy, R-Jetmore; Barbara Ballard, D-Lawrence, who was appointed to the committee for the day; Sue Boldra, R-Hays; Ward Cassidy, R-St. Francis; Ed Trimmer, D-Winfield; Valdenia Winn, D-Kansas City; Roderick Houston, R-Wichita; and Melissa Rooker, R-Fairway.  Remember, these are not official votes.  You would have to contact the representatives to ask how they actually voted and why.

Teacher Liability Insurance.  Late in the day, the committee passed HB 2232, which would direct the State Board to arrange for the purchase of liability insurance for teachers.   It was amended to instruct the State Board to coordinate with each unified school district to provide liability insurance.  KASB took no position. 

Celebrate Freedom Week.  Also Monday, the committee held a hearing on HB 2280, which establishes the week that includes September 17 each year as Celebrate Freedom week, and directs the State Board of Education to include the study of certain historic documents in history/government standards.  After a long discussion and a few minor amendments, it passed out on a voice vote.  There were a number of expressions of turning it into a resolution, but the failed at the end.  KASB took no position on the bill.

Senate Education:

Read to Succeed/Grade Retention.  The committee held a hearing on SB 169, which contains Governor Brownback’s three-part reading initiative.  KASB focused on the first part, which would require all districts to adopt a policy, beginning in 2917, that a student who failed to score at the lowest level on the third grade state reading assessment or an alternative assessment approved by the State Board of Education may not be promoted to fourth grade until demonstrating that level of proficiency.  There are various exceptions to this policy, which makes it difficult to estimate how many students might be affected.  In addition, the State Board will be adopting new assessments and performance levels over the two years under the No Child Left Behind waiver.

KASB stressed there is still not enough evidence to determine the long-term benefits or risks of mandatory grade-level retention, and noted the State of Florida, which has the longest record of such a program, ranks well below Kansas student performance, including for various subgroups.  KASB opposed requiring such a policy for all districts, but suggested it be considered an intervention for schools or districts that fail to make progress under the new accountability system.  KASB supported the parts of the bill that provide funding for reading interventions.  The bill also provides for incentive payments to top achieving schools.  Also opposing the bill were the Kansas National Education Association, Kansas City USD 500 and Topeka USD 501. Wichita USD 259 appeared as neutral.

The committee took no action on the bill, but it may be considered today.

Dyslexia Services.  After reviewing several amendments presented by committee Chair Sen. Steve Abrams, R-Arkansas City, to address concerns raised in testimony, no motion was offered to either amend or recommend SB 44.  KASB opposes the bill as introduced as a potentially expensive new mandate that also exceeds the requirements of federal special education law.  Unless action occurs today, that will likely end discussion on the bill this session.

Career Technical Education. The committee approved SB 128 on a voice vote.  The bill would allow CTE students until December following the year they graduate to complete national certification in certain high demand areas that result in $1,000 incentive payments to school districts (and also help pay the cost of assessments in these areas).  KASB did not testify on the bill, but is supportive.

Capital Outlay.  The committee also reviewed several amendments to SB 131, which would expand the allowable use of capital outlay funds, but after several members expressed concerns about the bill it was passed over.  Some of those concerns reflected KASB’s testimony on the bill.  KASB appeared as neutral, offering support for the concept of broader capital outlay uses, but only if capital outlay state aid equalization aid is restored.  KASB stressed the Gannon district court has ruled the entire capital outlay system is unconstitutional without state aid.

School District Financial Reporting.  The committee took up but did not finish discussion of SB 171, which would add several new requirements to financial data districts must report to the state and post on their websites, particularly in the area of student activities.  KASB opposes the bill for imposing additional costs on districts.

This afternoon, the committee is scheduled to hold a hearing and take possible action on SB 172, which would prohibit the use of Carnegie units for graduation requirements.  KASB will testify in support of the concept of moving away from “seat time” based requirements, but propose delaying the effective date to allow a new system to be developed at the state and local level.  The committee could take action on the bill today.

Other bills available for committee consideration today included: SB 103 – redefining at-risk pupil, and SB 176 – creating the coalition of innovative districts act.

House Education Budget Committee

Local Activities Budget.  The committee held a hearing on HB 2248, which would allow districts spending below the statewide average budget per pupil to adopt a mill levy to finance student activities and other programs not required by the state.  The levy would require a public vote for approval and no state equalization aid would be provided.  KASB testified in opposition based on the lack of equalization, but testified in support of a three-part package of increasing base state aid per pupil, the maximum local option budget and LOB equalization aid.  The committee could take action the bill this afternoon.

Mandatory LOB.  The committee then turned to HB 2003, which would require each district to adopt a 10% local option budget (which all districts already have) that would be used to calculate a high base budget per pupil.  The purpose is to aid the state in defending itself in the current school finance lawsuit.  KASB opposed the bill because it proposes to show more state support of education by LOB funding without addressing the underfunding of LOB equalization.  After reviewing a print-out of the bill’s impact on school districts, the committee took no action.

The committee is expected to continue to discuss HB 2003 when it meets today at 5:30 p.m.  Also available for possible action is HB 2215, which restores the threshold for transporting certain non-resident students from 2.5 miles to 10 miles.  KASB supports the bill.

House Taxation:

Machinery and Equipment Tax.  KASB joined a long list of local government representatives in opposing HB 2285, which would reduce taxes on certain commercial equipment or “trade fixtures” currently taxed as real, rather than personal, property.  The bill would reduce the tax base for both the state and local units of government, resulting in either less revenue or higher taxes on other property, mainly residential.  The committee could take action today.

Other Action in the Statehouse:

The Senate Ways and Means Committee is scheduled to take up the Governor’s budget for the Department of Education today, including school district state aid.  The education subcommittee essentially adopted the Governor’s proposals to keep most K-12 level, with some increase in general state aid this to keep the base at $3,838 and formula increases for KPERS contributions and capital improvement bond and interest aid.

The House voted 120-0 to passed HB 2261, which makes permanent the ability of districts to make transfers from certain restricted funds for general education purposes, and removes any limit on the district contingency fund.  KASB supports, the bill which was referred to the Senate Education Committee.