To provide a “template” or “place holder” for a Fiscal Year 2011-2012 “Omnibus” school aid, higher education and community colleges budget. This bill contains no appropriations, but may be amended at a later date to include them.   Official Text and Analysis.

With the recommendation that the substitute (H-1) be adopted and that the bill then pass.

To adopt a version of this budget that expresses the fiscal and policy preferences of the Republican-majority in the House on various spending items and programs.

To strip out provisions imposing loss of funds for school districts that agreed to abnormally long union contract extensions that allowed the union to defer until the contract expiration the loss of non-voluntary employee dues or fee payments under the recently enacted state right to work law that went into effect on March 28.

To strip out provisions imposing loss of funds for community colleges that agreed to abnormally long union contract extensions that allowed the union to defer until the contract expiration the loss of non-voluntary employee dues or fee payments under the recently enacted state right to work law that went into effect on March 28.

To reduce the amounts and revise details of best practices "incentives" funding that makes up a portion of state grants to universities.

To revise details of funding adjustments for school districts that share special education services.

To cut by 3 percent funding for universities that provide health insurance benefits to the domestic partners of unmarried employees.

To increase per-student state foundation allowance amounts to public school districts.

To increase spending on preschool programs from $109.2 million to $174.2 million. As passed by the House, this budget increases the spending by $38 million.

To increase community college spending and revise details of the allocation of money to individual colleges.

To add $2.5 million in university spending, allocated according to a specified formula.

To increase the per pupil funding for online "cyberschool" enrollment from 80 percent to 85 percent of the per pupil foundation allowance for the conventional school district where it is located.

To add $1.5 million for instruction to students of limited English-speaking ability.

To slightly increase the mininum per pupil state foundation allowance for school districts; reduce a proposed $50 million increase in spending on preschool programs to $38 million, and lower the household income eligibility cap on participants; require more of these preschool programs to be outsourced to for-profit or nonprofit providers; and scale-back from $225 to $100 per child a proposed increase in the amount spent on these programs (for a total of $3,500 per child).

To authorize grants to school districts of $3,200 per participant for training teachers in science, technology and math instruction, with the total amount spent to be determined later.

To authorize competitive grants to organizations conducting classroom or extracurricular student competitions in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics subjects, with the total amount of spending to be determined later.

To reduce the amount allocated to fiscal best practices incentive payments to school districts from $80 million in the current fiscal year to $25 million in the next fiscal year. The House budget contains a $100 "placeholder" for this item, with the final amount to be determined later.

To earmark $1.3 million in spending authorized by this budget for instruction to students of limited English-speaking ability, and prescribe the scope and duration of this instruction.

The House version of the K-12 school aid, community college and university budgets for the fiscal year that begins Oct 1, 2013. A separate House budget authorizes the rest of state government spending (House Bill 4328). This bill would appropriate $13.235 billion for K-12 public schools, compared to $12.944 billion this year. It also appropriates $1.430 billion for state universities, compared to $1.399 billion this year. Community colleges would get $334 million, vs. $294 million this year.

To send the bill back to the House "stripped" of all actual appropriations. This vote is basically a procedural method of launching negotiations to work out the differences between the House and Senate budgets.

To concur with a Senate-passed version of the bill. The vote sends the bill to a House-Senate conference committee to work out the differences.

The final version of the K-12 school aid, community college and university budgets for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1, 2013. House Bill 4328 authorizes the rest of state government spending. This bill would appropriate $13.361 billion for K-12 public schools, compared to $12.944 billion the previous year; $1.430 billion for state universities, compared to $1.399 billion the previous year; and $335 million for community colleges, up from $294 million. Of these amounts, $1.861 billion is federal money, vs. $1.798 billion the previous year.
Some highlights include: A $30 per pupil "foundation allowance" increase for school districts, and $60 for ones whose allowance is at the lower end. Spending on preschool programs will increase by $65.0 million to $174.6 million. Students in grades 5 to 12 will be allowed to take up to two online courses per term. Universities would get less money if they raise tuition more than 3.75 percent.