This article was originally posted 3/22/2022 on SUBV Facebook page
With a nearly 3 billion dollar budget surplus, the Kansas House voted today to NOT increase funding for special education (which has never been funded adequately according to THEIR OWN measures).
This vote affects YOUR student, whether or not you have a student receiving special education services (including gifted services). Why? Kansas mandates that districts fully provide SpEd services, but has never fully funded the state-obligated amount of funding for those services. YOUR student will receive less funding because of today’s vote.
Today, as the House worked on education funding, an amendment to add $68 million for SpEd funding was rejected. (It passed the first round, then a motion was made to reconsider, then it failed on the second vote.)
Our chart shows how BV-area House members voted on the final vote, voting for or against the amendment by Rep. Jarrod Ousley to add SpEd funding.
If your Representative voted NAY, that means they think school districts should absorb excess SpEd funding out of their operating funds - to Blue Valley Schools that’s about $9 million a year.
People move to Blue Valley for the schools - including the great Special Education services. BV has a higher-than-average percentage of SpEd students - including both disability and gifted students. But the Reps who voted against adding SpEd funding (in a year of budget surplus) don’t seem to understand that.
Look at this list - if YOUR BV-area House Rep has previously campaigned on “supporting our kids and their schools,” let them know what you think about their votes. Find out who your BV House member is here: https://ksleglookup.org/
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