Revision: Jan. 22, 2025, 3:33 p.m.
HB 773-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2025 SESSION
25-0792
07/08
HOUSE BILL 773-FN
AN ACT relative to aid to school districts for the cost of special education.
SPONSORS: Rep. Ladd, Graf. 5
COMMITTEE: Education Funding
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ANALYSIS
This bill removes the requirement that catastrophic special education funds be prorated among the school districts entitled to such aid and requires that disbursements for special education to a school district shall be at least 80 percent of the district’s entitlement for catastrophic aid costs in the fiscal year.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
25-0792
07/08
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Five
AN ACT relative to aid to school districts for the cost of special education.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Education; Special Education; State Aid. Amend RSA 186-C:18, III(a)-(b) to read as follows:
III.(a) The state board of education through the commissioner, department of education, shall distribute aid available under this paragraph as entitlement to such school districts as have a special education pupil for whose costs they are responsible, for whom the costs of special education in the fiscal year exceed 3 and 1/2 times the estimated state average expenditure per pupil for the school year preceding the year of distribution. [If in any year, the amount appropriated for distribution as special education aid in accordance with this section is insufficient therefor, the appropriation shall be prorated proportionally based on entitlement among the districts entitled to a grant.] If there are unexpended funds appropriated under this paragraph at the end of any fiscal year, such funds shall be distributed for court-ordered placements and episodes of treatment under RSA 186-C:19-b. The state may designate up to $250,000 of the funds which are appropriated as required by this paragraph, for each fiscal year, to assist those school districts which, under guidelines established by rules of the state board of education, may qualify for emergency assistance to mitigate the impact of special education costs. The state may designate up to an additional $250,000 of the funds which are appropriated under this paragraph for each fiscal year for any community of 1,000 or fewer residents to mitigate the impact of special education costs when emergency assistance is necessary to prevent significant financial harm to such district or community. Upon application to the commissioner of education, and approval by the commissioner, such funds may be accepted and expended by school districts in accordance with this chapter; provided, however, that if a school district has received emergency assistance funds for certain children with disabilities, it shall not receive special education aid for those same children with disabilities. If any of the funds designated for emergency assistance under this paragraph are not used for such emergency assistance purposes, the funds shall be used to assist school districts in meeting special education cost increases in their special education programs as provided by this paragraph.
(b) The school district shall be liable for 3 and 1/2 times the estimated state average expenditure per pupil for the school year preceding the year of distribution, plus 20 percent of the additional cost, up to 10 times the estimated state average expenditure per pupil for the school year preceding the year of distribution. The department of education shall distribute to the school district not less than 85 percent of the district’s entitlement for catastrophic aid costs in the fiscal year.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
25-0792
1/11/25
HB 773-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT relative to aid to school districts for the cost of special education.
FISCAL IMPACT: This bill does not provide funding.
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Estimated State Impact | ||||||
| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | FY 2028 | ||
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Revenue Fund(s) | None | |||||
Expenditures* | $0 | Indeterminable Increase - See Methodology | ||||
Funding Source(s) | Education Trust Fund | |||||
Appropriations* | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Funding Source(s) | None | |||||
*Expenditure = Cost of bill *Appropriation = Authorized funding to cover cost of bill | ||||||
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Estimated Political Subdivision Impact | ||||||
| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | FY 2028 | ||
Local Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Local Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable Increase - See Methodology | ||||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill amends the proration provision for the determination of special education (SPED) aid to school districts under RSA 186-C:18, however, it is unclear if it eliminates it or sets it at not less than 85% of the entitlement amount. Under current law, SPED aid reimbursement requests are prorated based on the appropriation available from the state operating budget. Currently, the Department of Education does not have authority to draw additional funds to make payments that exceed amounts appropriated, nor is it provided by this bill. At the time of the development of the state operating budget, amounts that will be needed for SPED aid payments is not known, as they are based on actual prior school year costs (FY 2026 = 2024-2025 school year and FY 2027 = 2025-2026 school year).
The Department of Education states this bill’s impact on state expenditures and local district revenue is indeterminable as the number of students that could qualify each year cannot be predicted. The total amount of claims submitted for SPED aid for school year 2023-2024 (FY 2025) was $50,273,602. The FY 2025 appropriation is $33,917,000, resulting in a proration of 67.5%. Based on those figures, if there is no proration provision SPED aid would increase by $16,356,602, or more, per year beginning in FY 2026. If the proration provision was set at 85%, the aid amount would be $42,732,562, resulting in an annual increase of $8,815,562.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Education