Senate leaders this past week recommended a 2 percent increase on the basic education funding formula for the next two years. Chairwoman Carla Nelson presented SF 1556 on Monday to the Senate E-12 Finance Committee.
Many members of the committee, on both sides, as well as several school groups testified in support of the bill. They acknowledged that it is not be enough to catch up with inflation and funding levels experience in the 1990s.
MREA is among many organizations that would prefer to see the basic formula permanently tied to inflation, but that proposal has never gained much traction from either caucus over the years due to concerns that would put “government on auto-pilot.”
The bill was laid over for possible inclusion in the E-12 omnibus bill. Budget targets are expected to come out early this week.
Learn more about the budget targets proposed.
