Legislature(2003 - 2004)
03/09/2004 11:01 AM House EDU
| Audio | Topic |
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HB 425-BOARDING SCHOOL FUNDING
Number 1295
CHAIR GATTO announced that the next order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 425, "An Act relating to funding for school
districts operating secondary school boarding programs, to
funding for school districts from which boarding students come,
and to inoperative school districts; and providing for an
effective date."
Number 1314
REPRESENTATIVE JOHN COGHILL, Alaska State Legislature, testified
as sponsor of HB 425. He told the members that several issues
have come to his attention which he will address. He said
Section 1 does not need to be in this bill, so he will be
requesting that it be amended out either in this committee or
the next committee of referral. Representative Coghill
explained that Eddie Jeans [Finance Manager, School Finance and
Facilities Section, Department of Education and Early
Development] confirmed that Section 1 refers to the ten-student
count provision which is not addressed in this legislation.
Number 1414
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL clarified that HB 425 does not apply to
the Nome-Beltz High School where students are brought in from
villages for two-week classes. He commented that it was not his
intention to provide airfare for students to fly in and out of
Nome for these classes. Representative Coghill told the members
that he intends to suggest that language be inserted in the bill
to limit this pilot program to 170-day schools.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL commented that another problem has come
to his attention that some boarding schools are getting federal
grant money and it is not his intention for the funding in HB
425 to be added to federal funding. He explained that he only
recently discovered this problem when he was reviewing a list of
federal grants to Alaska and noticed that Galena received some
funds for its boarding school. He noted that Nenana did not.
Representative Coghill told the members that he is hopeful that
Mr. Jeans will help him address this issue.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL referred to a list of the schools that
show savings to the state of Alaska. Nenana saves close to
$319,000, he said. If this bill passes that savings would be
used for the stipends for students. He told the members he
believes the cost to the state would be an even draw for a very
worthwhile educational opportunity. He added that he believes
the Galena, Nenana, and Bethel schools are doing an excellent
job and are so different in their operations that he is looking
for the broadest language possible to ensure inclusion in the
pilot program.
Number 1610
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL emphasized that these boarding schools
are open to any student who cannot obtain an education in
his/her home community; however, this bill would also provide
the opportunity for students who wish to apply for other
reasons. He reminded the member that each of these boarding
schools has a waiting list for entry. He asked the committee to
move the bill to the next committee of referral.
Number 1637
CHAIR GATTO commented that Representative Coghill wants to
delete Section 1 and do a rewrite of some of the language in the
bill.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL replied that he has a question that just
came to him that he is exploring. He told the members that he
would commit to correcting these points in the next committee of
referral which is the House Health, Education and Social
Services Standing Committee.
Number 1666
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON commented that she does not understand how
money is saved. She said that as chair of the House Health,
Education and Social Services Standing Committee she would be
willing to work with the sponsor of the bill to develop a
committee substitute.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL replied that he would prefer to have
someone in the Department of Education and Early Development
explain the savings component that was mentioned.
Number 1723
EDDIE JEANS, Finance Manager, School Finance and Facilities
Section, Department of Education and Early Development,
testified on HB 425 and answered questions from the members. He
pointed to a handout in the members' packet from the Nenana City
School [District] which provides an analysis of the per student
dollar amount generated through the foundation program for the
students based upon the community that each student lives in.
That figure is then compared with the dollars generated by
attending public school in Nenana. Mr. Jeans said in looking
down the list it shows that many of these schools have very
small student populations and therefore the dollar amount on a
per student basis is high. When students come to Nenana the per
student amount decreases because of economies of scale. He
summarized that is the process used in determining the savings.
Mr. Jeans told the members that the state has been realizing
this savings for a number years due to these students attending
school in Nenana.
Number 1795
REPRESENTATIVE WOLF asked Mr. Jeans how much the Galena home
school program supports the boarding school program.
MR. JEANS responded that based upon the audited financial
statements the department got for the Galena City School
District last year, the amount of money recorded as its expense
for the correspondence program was close to $2 million less than
what was actually generated from the foundation program. He
clarified that there are caveats to this statement. The
correspondence expenditure recorded is for the instructional
program for correspondence only. The program also provides
services for special education which would be allocated to a
different part of the audit. There are also administrative
expenses that are associated with the correspondence program
that would be the school administration component of the budget.
He summarized that he could not say that Galena correspondence
program made $2 million. It is not that simple. Based on that
difference, he said, it is safe to say Galena made some money on
the program and it is being used to subsidize other programs,
but to what degree he could not say.
Number 1928
REPRESENTATIVE GARA asked if the bill provides that each of the
students who attends these schools would get $6,000 outside of
the foundation formula.
MR. JEANS replied no.
Number 1967
REPRESENTATIVE GARA asked if he understands correctly that if it
is found that adequate educational opportunities are not
available in a student's home district, then the student could
attend one of these boarding schools.
MR. JEANS explained that the current program which is outlined
in regulation says if a student does not have daily access to a
secondary program, then the student would qualify for a boarding
home stipend. It is not necessary to attend a boarding home
school; the student could opt to go to a community where the
student would be housed with a family and a stipend would be
paid to that family through the school district, he said.
Regulations also provide for one round trip airfare to and from
the student's residence. In response to Representative Gara's
question, he clarified that all this bill does is remove the
criteria that there has to be a lack of daily access to a
secondary program in order for a student to qualify for this
program [stipend]. This pilot program would be offered until
2009, Mr. Jeans added.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA commented that the compensation mechanism
would be exactly the same. This pilot program just provides the
opportunities for children who have the adequate opportunity
locally, but who chooses to attend a boarding school.
MR. JEANS replied that is correct.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA asked how the funding works.
MR. JEANS responded that the stipend is paid to the school
district to cover the residential cost.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA asked how the base student allocation is
paid for.
MR. JEANS replied that the students are counted in the school
they attended for which there is foundation funding. For
example, in the case of the Galena school where there are 83
students being served, the state pays foundation aid for those
students. He commented that only school age students [grades 9
through 12] qualify for the base student allocation, so if there
are 13-year or 14-year students there would not be any funds
provided for them.
Number 2125
REPRESENTATIVE GARA concluded that the only fiscal impact is
that students leave an area where there is a higher base student
allocation and go to an area of a lower base student allocation.
MR. JEANS replied that is correct.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA pointed out that one or two students in
small school districts may opt for this choice. The cost in
that smaller district is still the same; however, the base
student allocation for those two students has gone elsewhere.
Representative Gara said that while the cost to the state may
not have changed, there is a loss in funds to the school
district the student has left.
MR. JEANS responded that Representative Gara analysis that fewer
students equates to fewer dollars is correct.
CHAIR GATTO commented that conversely if a couple of additional
students enroll the district receives more funds.
MR. JEANS pointed out that there is a hold harmless clause for
those school that may fall below the threshold of ten students.
For example, if a school originally had 12 students, but three
elected to go to a boarding school, that school would be held
harmless and still be funded for the ten-student minimum, he
said. He reminded the members that the way the foundation
program provides funding is by group. The first grouping is 10
to 20 students. The funding is the same within those
parameters. Mr. Jeans said that for example if a school had 15
student and four left then the school would not loose any
funding. The school's funding is still the same, he emphasized.
MR. JEANS said in response to Chair Gatto's question about a
minimum number of students to consider, he suggested that there
probably is a minimum. He commented that the legislature would
probably not want to maintain a school in a community if there
are only three or five students. Mr. Jeans told the members
that the current foundation program says that there has to be at
least ten students to maintain a school for funding purposes.
The hold harmless provision in this bill says that if a school
falls below ten students, the school will not be closed and
would still be funded for ten students. He reiterated that in a
school of 10 to 20 students, there could be students that come
or go and the school still gets the same funding.
Number 2297
REPRESENTATIVE GARA said he understands that in the school
districts where there are ten or less students, it is held
harmless. However, in a small school district where there are
60 students in grades Kindergarten through 12th (K-12), that is
five students per grade, if one or two students leave, the same
number of teachers are still required. So those school
districts are left with the same costs, but with $12,000 to
$20,000 less compensation from the state. That is where his
concern lies, he said. Representative Gara commented that is a
significant loss that cannot be absorbed.
MR. JEANS responded that schools that have 60 students do not
generate $10,000 to [$20,000] per student. The cost per child
goes down substantially. He explained that the size of school
Representative Gara discussed will normally have a student
enrollment variation of two to three kids each year.
CHAIR GATTO commented that just because there are 60 students
and 12 grades, that does not mean the school has 12 teachers.
Perhaps there would be three or four teachers, he offered.
Number 2374
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL said that for those presently enrolled in
these schools there would probably not be more than 220 students
out of 133,000 students in Alaska. The impact would be small,
he commented.
CHAIR GATTO asked if Representative Coghill believes this may
become a trend where there would be regional boarding schools.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL replied that the bill is a pilot program
with a set time period and limited only to those schools that
are currently operating. He commented that the program needs to
demonstrate that it works before there should be any
proliferation of boarding schools.
Number 2462
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON explained that in the community of Pelican
there are five high school students. The community is
considering not retaining the one high school teacher next year.
She explained that three of the students graduate this year,
which leaves only two students next year. She asked Mr. Jeans
if a school could send students to another school.
Number 2517
MR. JEANS replied that according to current regulations neither
a school district or the Department of Education and Early
Development can send a child outside of their community of
residence. The school district will still have the
responsibility of providing educational services although it may
not be the method preferred. It may be through a correspondence
program and the district may contract with another district to
provide that correspondence program.
Number 2540
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON asked Mr. Jeans what number of students
[are required in] secondary schools where teachers are provided.
MR. JEANS replied that he is not sure that he understands his
question. The state funds K-12 schools as small as ten
students. If a school has a secondary school student attending,
the school must provide secondary services.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON asked if he understands that if there are
two to five students in the secondary level the school must
provide services. He asked if the important point is that there
be at least ten students in the entire school.
MR. JEANS agreed that the school must have ten students. He
reminded the members of the case of St. George that runs a
Kindergarten through 8th grade school. St. George is still
required to provide educational services to the kids in the 9th
through 12th grades if the students elect to remain in the
community, he said. He added that it is his understanding that
the students from St. George are electing to go to Galena.
Number 2620
REPRESENTATIVE KAPSNER asked for further clarification on the
deletion of Section 1.
MR. JEANS explained that Section 1 relates to inoperative school
districts. It has no bearing on this piece of legislation
whatsoever, he said. He told the members that initially
Representative Coghill believed that Section 1 was tied into the
minimum of ten students for funding purposes. It is not, so it
is unnecessary.
Number 2654
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON asked if Nenana offers education beyond K-
12.
MR. JEANS responded that Galena offers education beyond grade
12.
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON asked who pays for a student who has
completed 12th grade and wishes to continue through the 13th or
14th year for vocational training such as beauty school.
MR. JEANS replied that it would not be paid by K-12 education.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON asked if the full school year is 170 days.
MR. JEANS told the members that it is 180 days, ten of which can
be in-service days.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA posed a hypothetical situation where the
Municipality of Anchorage lost one student and the municipality
lost one percent of its funding. It gets about $300 million of
foundation formula money. If a student leaves [and there was a
one percent loss in funding], the municipality would loose $3
million. He commented that is not going to happen in Anchorage,
but in a school district that has 100 students, when one student
leaves then the district has lost one percent of its funding.
He suggested a hold harmless provision for the base student
allocation for schools with 100 or less students when there is a
loss of students to boarding schools. He asked if Mr. Jeans
believes this would have a significant fiscal impact.
Number 2777
MR. JEANS replied that he really does not know. He reminded the
members that the discussion is really about Galena, Nenana, and
Lower Kuskokwim to Bethel boarding home programs. These
programs are currently operating at capacity or close to
capacity and these kids are already coming from communities
around the state. If school districts were really concerned
about the loss in enrollment, he said he is sure those districts
would be testifying today about the need for a hold harmless
provision. He added that he has not heard that this is a
problem from school districts.
Number 2808
REPRESENTATIVE GARA said that the way he reads Section 1 is if
it is deleted a school district with ten students looses a
student, then the school district closes down. Why isn't there
hold harmless language that says a school district will not be
closed if the last marginal student goes to a boarding school.
MR. JEANS told the members that the only school district that
could fall into that category is the Pelican City School
District. He commented that he really cannot see why the
legislature would want to keep a school district operating if it
had fewer than ten students.
CHAIR GATTO commented that there may be a desire to raise the
number of students to a level higher than ten students.
MR. JEANS said in response to Representative Gara's question
that the hold harmless provision for the foundation count would
apply in the example he put forth. If the school district's
count fell below ten students because a student(s) went to the
boarding school then the district would be held harmless.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA asked how the hold harmless provision reads.
MR. JEANS replied that it is Section 3 of the bill which reads
as follows:
Sec.3. AS.14.17.905 is amended by adding a new
subsection to read:
(c) Notwithstanding (a)(1) of this section, a
community with an ADM of less than 10 shall be counted
as a school if the ADM would be at least 10 if each
student from the community who is enrolled in a
district secondary school boarding program outside of
the student's community and operated under AS
14.16.200 were counted as a student in the community.
MR. JEANS told the members that what this section says is if a
school district or community falls below ten students and it can
be demonstrated to the department that enrollment dropped
because students went to a boarding school, then the district
would be held harmless for foundation funding purposes at the
minimum of ten students.
Number 2910
CHAIR GATTO pointed out that this has already been discussed in
an earlier meeting. He said for example that a whole family of
kids could leave bringing the student count down to five. Even
though a school of five is not what is wanted, with this hold
harmless provision that is exactly what would happen if the
students went to a boarding school, he said. He told the
members that it is not a provision that he is entirely
comfortable with.
Number 2933
REPRESENTATIVE GARA pointed out that there could be two students
who decide to spend their last year in a boarding school, then
the school would close. The next year two more students enroll
and the school district would have open the school again. He
commented that this is the kind of instability that could cost a
fair amount of money.
MR. JEANS responded to Representative Gara request for
clarification between the differences in language in Section 1
and Section 3 with respect to the number of students which would
trigger the closure of a school district. He told the members
that of the districts that serve 10 to 15 students, the majority
of those students are elementary school age. There are not a
great number of secondary school age students.
TAPE 04-14, SIDE B
Number 2966
MR. JEANS said it would be highly unlikely that there would be
five secondary students who would leave a district. He
explained that the first section of statute is statute that has
been on the books a long time and it says that if a district
falls below eight students the school board may declare itself
inoperative. The foundation formula was rewritten under SB 36
which said to qualify for funding as a separate community, not
district, there must be at least ten students. He clarified
that one section is dealing with the operation of a school
district as a whole and the other is dealing with the number of
students for funding purposes within a community.
Number 2848
REPRESENTATIVE KAPSNER expressed her concern about removing
Section 1. She told the members that she attended boarding
school for one year and for extenuating circumstances it did not
work out. She said she had two sister who went to Mt.
Edgecumbe. It worked out for one sister, but not for the other,
so she moved back to the village.
REPRESENTATIVE KAPSNER told the members that at the Bethel
Alternative Boarding School (BABS) students have to take a
sobriety pledge. She said that is wonderful, but because of
zero tolerance some of the students are asked to leave if the
pledge is broken. She said she believes it would be terrible if
a student who went to that school messed up once, was sent home,
and then dropped out because there were no options at home.
Number 2842
MR. JEANS replied that the example Representative Kapsner posed
to the committee is happening at BABS today. He explained that
all this bill does is provide some financial assistance with the
residential component for a five year period and then it will be
decided if it is effective or not.
REPRESENTATIVE KAPSNER commented that she was speaking to her
concern of the removal of Section 1.
MR. JEANS said that Section 1 can stay in the bill. He told the
members that Section 1 has no impact one way or the other. The
hold harmless provision in Section 3 will cover the provision in
Section 1, he reiterated.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA asked Mr. Jeans to again explain the fiscal
impact in terms of saving general fund money.
Number 2800
MR. JEANS told the members that the department had estimated
that the fiscal impact would be approximately $1.4 million. He
said he believes that fiscal note could be reduced downward by
$227,000 now that Representative Coghill clarified that it is
not his intention to provide round trip airfare and boarding
expenses for the two-week classes such as those in Nome.
MR. JEANS commented that the savings that was discussed early
was based on the analysis that Nenana provided on students that
are currently attending Nenana. He explained that what is being
said is that if these students went to school in the student's
home communities of residence, the state would be paying an
additional $318,000 in state foundation aid to those other
school districts.
Number 2728
RICH BAUYMFALK testified in support of HB 425. He told the
members that the students elect to go to the boarding schools
for many reasons including sports and are getting a better
education. Mr. Bauymfalk said the students and parents are not
looking at the dollar amount, it is the education that is of
concern. He urged support of HB 425.
Number 2641
JIM SMITH, Superintendent, Galena School District, testified in
support of HB 425. He told the members that Galena has 85
students that come from 35 different communities in Alaska.
Galena has three different programs including the local school
district, the residential school, and the correspondence school.
The effect is that it provides a larger population base just as
a larger community has that advantage, he said. Mr. Smith said
if the amount of money received for average daily membership
(ADM) for Galena was divided by the total number of students
served in the three programs, the amount received would be about
$3,800 per student. By using that model it means that Galena is
serving those 85 students attending the boarding school for
roughly $300,000, he explained. If these 85 students were sent
home to their home districts the cost to the state to educate
these student would be $680,000. Mr. Smith pointed out that
even with the proposed pilot program which provides funds for
residential services, it would still be cheaper to educate the
students at Galena than to send them all home.
MR. SMITH said that Galena has been aggressive in securing
federal grants to operate a resiliency program. These funds are
shared by Nenana and Mt. Edgecumbe. There is also the Alaska
Natives grant which will come to the school next year. It will
support five dorm positions in Galena, three in Mt. Edgecumbe,
and one in Nenana. This grant has been shared with the other
schools for the last four years, he commented.
Number 2436
MR. SMITH told the members that the Alaska congressional
delegation supports the process of saving lives and providing
education for those students who do not have a secondary
program. He said that Galena is trying to improve the lifestyle
and the residential life of the students. The school district
has the kids six hours per day, five days per week, but the
residential halls have the kids the rest of the week, he added.
He cautioned that the federal funds are not funds that can be
planned on and hopes the state will support the program which
will give them additional funds that can be planned for. Mr.
Smith explained that he currently issues teachers contracts with
some risk because he often has to get the funding for those
positions as the year progresses. He told the members that HB
425 would be a godsend to Galena and urged the committee's
support.
Number 2302
ROBERT RYCHNOVSKI testified in support of HB 425 and answered
questions from the members. He urged the support of the Nenana
boarding school program. He told the members that the school
provides a very good alternative for students who need to attend
the boarding school for a variety of reasons. He said he has
visited the school several times and was very impressed.
Parents worry that their kids are safe when they are away from
home, and the school's living center is very well run and it has
outstanding employees. It is clear the staff cares about the
students. The place is well setup, well maintained and very
clean. He said he believes his daughter is getting a good
education there.
MR. RYCHNOVSKI told the members that he was surprised when he
heard of the funding situation and is concerned that this school
remain open.
Number 2216
CHAIR GATTO asked how many children he has enrolled at Nenana.
MR. RYCHNOVSKI replied he has one daughter attending there.
CHAIR GATTO asked what kind of an education was available in
Iliamna. Specifically, how large was it and how many teachers
were there, he asked.
MR. RYCHNOVSKI replied that there were about 80 students in
Iliamna and it has about seven teachers. He offered that the
reason his daughter went to Nenana was due to the limited class
offerings in rural districts. Nenana offered classes that he
wanted her to have.
Number 2171
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON moved Amendment 1 as follows:
On Page 1, delete lines 5 through 10
Renumber the sections accordingly
Number 2152
REPRESENTATIVE GARA said that he does not have an objection, but
wondered if he could ask Mr. Jeans another question. He
commented that he know Representative Kapsner has a concern
about removing Section 1 from the bill and asked if the
committee could wait until her return to committee before
proceeding with Amendment 1.
RYNNIEVA MOSS, Staff to Representative Coghill, Alaska State
Legislature, testified on behalf of Representative Coghill,
sponsor of HB 425. Since a lot of the members that sit on this
committee also sit on the next committee of referral, she
suggested that Representatives Coghill and Kapsner get together
to discuss her concerns. If a change is necessary the change
could be made in the next committee of referral, she commented.
Number 2081
There being no objection, Amendment 1 was adopted by the House
Special Committee on Education.
Number 2029
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON moved Amendment 2 as follows:
On Page 1, Line 14
Between the words "a" and "secondary"
Insert "full school year"
CHAIR GATTO asked Representative Seaton to read the sentence as
it would be with the amendment.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON replied that with this amendment the
sentence would read as follows:
boarding programs. (a) A district that began
operating a full school year secondary boarding ...
Number 2014
REPRESENTATIVE GARA objected for purposes of discussion. He
asked if the term "full school year" is defined somewhere.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON replied that the Department of Education
and Early Development told the committee that a full school year
is 180 days of which 10 days could be used for school in-service
training.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA withdrew his objection. There being no
objection, Amendment 2 was adopted by the House Special
Committee on Education.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA commented that the analysis from Galena and
Nenana reflects that HB 425 would save the state money. He
asked if the department has a position as to whether this bill
would save the state money.
MR. JEANS replied that the analysis that was done by Nenana
seems reasonable; however, he has not verified the numbers. He
pointed out that when Nenana told the members it would be saving
the state of Alaska, what is really being said is that this is
the money that is currently being saved. He reiterated that
this bill will cost the state about $1.2 million each year for
the five year pilot program. Mr. Jeans pointed out that the
fiscal note needs to be corrected.
Number 1901
REPRESENTATIVE GARA acknowledged that it would cost the state
$1.2 million each year, but asked if the analysis is correct
will it actually save the state money.
CHAIR GATTO replied that it would only cost more money if the
students were placed in a regular classroom. He commented that
it is almost an impossible question for Mr. Jeans to answer.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA said that currently the analysis is that by
allowing these children to go to boarding school less is being
spent by the state than would be spent if the children attended
schools in their local school districts. By expanding the
program a larger number of children will be allowed to go to
boarding school so even though the state will be paying more
stipends and round trip airfares, the cost to the state will be
less in the long term. He asked if he understands this
correctly.
Number 1809
MR. JEANS commented that this program is not an expansion of the
program offering. He said these students are already attending
Nenana and Galena. This proposal looks at funding the
residential component of approximately the same number of
students who currently attend. Mr. Jeans told the members that
what the analysis says is if these schools closed their door
tomorrow and all the students went back to their home
communities, it would cost the state an additional $300,000 in
both cases. It would cost the state an additional $600,000
through the foundation program to put these children back in
their home communities, he reiterated. That is what the
analysis says.
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON asked what if the students went back to
their home communities and did a correspondence program. The
districts would not get full funding then, she commented.
MR. JEANS replied that Representative Wilson is correct. If the
students opted for a correspondence program its funding would be
at a different level.
CHAIR GATTO suggested that in all likelihood these students are
going nowhere. The students are in the school and plan to stay
there.
MR. JEANS replied that is the reason the bill is before the
committee. There is no assurance that Nenana would continue to
operate based on the current funding levels. They need some
additional support, he said. It also provides the legislature
with an opportunity to do a case study to see how this program
works.
Number 1708
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON asked what funding mechanism will be used
to fund this program.
MR. JEANS replied that it would currently go into the boarding
home component which is already in the budget, he said.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA commented that he believes he has heard two
conflicting answers to the same question. He asked if the state
is currently paying one round-trip ticket per year and a monthly
stipend for each student. He asked if the amount paid per
student is changing.
Number 1624
MR. JEANS replied that the amount per student is not changing,
neither is the round trip airfare or the stipend. For example,
in Galena there are currently 83 students, of those 83 students
six qualify for the residential stipend and the one roundtrip
airfare under the current program. This bill expands the
program by allowing the other 77 students to be funded for the
residential component.
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON asked why only six are allowed the
residential component now and with this bill the other 77 will
be included.
Number 1564
MR. JEANS under the existing program those six children do not
have daily access to a secondary program where they live. These
children qualify for a stipend. The other 77 children do have
daily access to a secondary program where they live, so for
those children it is a choice, he explained.
CHAIR GATTO added that daily access merely means that the school
offers classes in grades 9 through 12.
MR. JEANS replied that is the correct definition.
Number 1500
REPRESENTATIVE GARA withdrew his objection.
Number 1492
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON moved to report HB 425, Version D, as
amended, out of committee with individual recommendations and
the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB
425(EDU) was reported from the House Health, Education and
Social Services Standing Committee.
MS. MOSS said in response to Chair Gatto's request for a revised
fiscal note that a new fiscal note will be provided before the
bill is heard in House Health, Education and Social Services
Standing Committee.
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