Legislative Update - Week 2

The school districts of Georgia, Fairfax, and Fletcher have much in common. They are all in Franklin West Supervisory District and they all have school boards that have developed Special Educational programs that are among the most efficient and least costly in the state. All three have been identified as low spending districts, each one of the 94 school districts that spend 20% less than the state average. Georgia spends 39.9% less, Fairfax 38.3% less, and Fletcher 31% less than the average. Their boards and administrators should be commended for their fine work in meeting the needs of students and holding costs down.

A change in the law enabled costs for individual school districts to be examined for the first year. Spending in prior years was reported on a Supervisory District level which did not reflect how different schools, even within the same district, were dealing with the increased number of high need youngsters and the increasing cost of providing necessary services. The state-wide variability within school districts was from $497 to $5,271 for school districts with special education students. This can easily occur if a district has very few, but very high cost students. It is extremely hard for a given district to predict which students may move in or out of the district. But on the whole, districts do a good job of budgeting. The estimated cost for all districts last year ($223.5m) was within 1% of the actual expenses ($22.7m). That is a very good job.

Now that it is possible to examine high and low spending districts, the Department of Education will be sending letters to building Principal’s in high spending districts so that they can account for the higher than normal levels of spend.

We already know that some districts have very unique circumstances that affect costs dramatically and are beyond their control. In one district, the spending for 4 students was $275,000 out of a $1.0 million special education budget. If those students were removed from the equation the districts spending would be much closer to the state average. We know of other high spending districts that have low outcomes and no seemingly unique circumstances. There is also the question of how well some of the low spending districts are meeting student needs. The work of the Dept. of Education will provide some answers. The goal is that the process of studying both types of districts may lead to indications of potential cost savings using better management practices and improved programs. The outcome desired is better learning for students and lower costs for school districts. Our local boards, staff, and administrators are already leading the way.
During the next week the Education Committee will focus on school breakfast programs, the education fund balance sheet, and hear advice on how to support school district efforts to share services with others. There will be a joint hearing with the Senate Education Committee, Chaired by Senator Collins, to explore the Autism Services Plan (Act 35) and an open presentation on the floor of the House on “Why Vermont Works.” We will also be taking a second round of testimony on Education Property Tax and Capital Construction suspension. This conflict between bills is a major concern. Since money is tight, the process for requesting school construction grants had been suspended. In the past, approved school construction expenses did not count in the per-pupil spending amounts. Now, since approval for construction is not possible, schools that need to make major repairs must make them solely with their own funds and must also add those expenses to the per-pupil costs. This may cause some districts to be seen as high spending districts. This needs to be fixed. School districts should not have to wait to create an emergency situation that would trigger state aid (i.e.until a roof falls in or mold develops) before addressing a health or safety concern.

I can be reached during the week in Montpelier by calling toll free at the State House 1-800-322-5616, by E-mail at ggilbert@leg.state.vt.us, or at my home answering machine at 849-6333.

Gary Gilbert
State Representative
Franklin 1
Fairfax/Georgia