The House and Senate School Aid Appropriations Subcommittees have finally released their budget proposals the last week of April. The House version, House Bill 4286 (H-1), increases the per-pupil foundation by 4% and the Senate, Senate Bill 173 (S-1), by 6%. The Governor’s budget included a 5% increase. All of the proposals include free meals for all students and increases to at-risk funding, English language learners, special education and ISDs. Each proposal has slightly different ways of increasing the funding.
The following breaks down pertinent sections of budget and compares each of the proposals:
Sec. 6 (4) – Definition of membership
Governor: No changes.
House: Changes the pupil count total to be the sum of 50% of the immediately preceding fiscal year and 50% of the current fiscal year.
Senate: Counts a pupil enrolled in a district pre-K program as 1.2 FTE.
Sec 11x – Consolidation and infrastructure fund
Governor: Deposits $500 million into fund in 2022-2023 fiscal year, removes requirement that less than 50% of funds be spent on non-consolidation projects and requires the completion of the infrastructure study before funding is awarded.
House: Concurs with the Govenor but deposits $782.6 million in the 2022-2023 fiscal year.
Senate: Does not include an appropriation but concurs with Governor on boilerplate language.
Sec. 20 – Per-pupil foundation allowance
Governor: Increases the target foundation allowance by $458 per pupil for an allowance of $9,608, a 5% increase. It sets the cyber school allowance at $7,687 per pupil, 80% of the target foundation allowance.
House: Increases the target foundation allowance by $366 per pupil for an allowance of $9,516, a 4% increase. It maintains the cyber school allowance at the current amount of $9,150.
Senate: Increases the target foundation allowance by $550 per pupil for an allowance of $9,700, a 6% increase. It sets the cyber school allowance at $7,760 per pupil, 80% of the target foundation allowance.
Secs. 21h and 22p – Partnership districts
Governor: Increases funding by $36 million over three years starting in 2023-2024. Requires access to education fiscal and policy issue training for district leadership, including school board members, and increases outcome goals to include improved graduation rates and measuring school attendance.
House: Increases funding by $36 million for 2023-2024, otherwise concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Increases funding by $12 million for 2023-2024, otherwise concurs with Governor.
Sec. 22d – Rural and isolated districts
Governor: Increases funding in this section by $443,000, a 5% increase, for payments to rural and isolated districts.
House: Concurs with the Governor and adds $500,000 for an island district only reachable by a toll bridge.
Senate: Increases funding by $2.8 million and adds $500,000 for an island district only reachable by a toll bridge.
Sec 22k and 22l – School Transportation Fund – NEW
Governor: Does not include
House: Creates fund with $450 million and appropriates $150 million through Sec 22l to offset district transportation costs.
Senate: Does not include.
Sec 23g – MI kids back on track
Governor: Includes $300 million for fiscal year 2022-2023 for Mi Kids Back on Track program for districts to respond to unfinished learning.
House: Concurs with Governor but removes ISDs as eligible recipients and allows summer school as an allowable expense.
Senate: Concurs with Governor but only funds it at $100 million.
Sec. 23h – Math essentials – NEW
Governor: Includes $30 million for grants to districts to support the improvement of math teaching and learning. Grant funding could be used for instructional materials or programs, math recovery specialists or just-in-time personalized support programs.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Did not include
Sec. 27h – Mentor teachers – NEW
Governor: Includes $25 million for grants to districts to create mentor programs to support and retain teachers, counselors and administrators. The grants would be for stipends for mentors, materials needed and to cover out-of-class time for the mentor teacher.
House: Concurs with Governor and adds that districts can be reimbursed up to $3,000 to provide mentoring for school administrators.
Senate: Did not include.
Sec 27l – Salary incentive pilot program – NEW
Governor: Does not include.
House: Does not include.
Senate: Includes $125 million for district and ISDS to create a salary incentive pilot program.
Secs. 30d and 31k – Expanded breakfast and lunch programs – NEW
Governor: Includes $160 million to reimburse schools for the cost of providing free breakfast and lunch to all students. To receive the funding, a district would have to forgive all student lunch debt. Sec. 31k includes $1 million to help schools retire that debt. Districts would still have to take efforts to have families fill out relevant family income information.
House: Concurs with Governor and adds sec 30e to reimburse districts for the cost of providing special meals to meet dietary restrictions as confirmed by a doctors note.
Senate: Concurs with Governor and adds sec 31l to reimburse districts for the cost of providing special meals, such as though catering to medical needs or vegetarian diets.
Sec. 31a – At-risk funding
Governor: Increases funding by $64.7 million to fund payments at 11.5% of foundation allowance, $1,105 per at-risk pupil.
House: Increases funding by $273.9 million and sets the new percentage of funding from the state at 35% of foundation allowance.
Senate: Increases funding by $173.1 million to fund payments at 11.5% of the foundation allowance but also creates a scale, giving districts with the higher concentrations of poverty a reimbursement up to 15.3%.
Sec. 31n – School mental health and support services
Governor: Increases funding for this section by $28.9 million to $106.5 million for licensed behavioral health providers in schools. It also continues having those providers qualify for federal Medicaid match funding.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Concurs with the Governor and adds language that if money is left unspent it can be reappropriated to another ISD.
Sec. 31aa –Mental health grants
Governor: Doubles the funding for this section to $300 million for per-pupil payments to districts over two years for activities to improve the mental health of students and staff, including hiring school psychologists, social workers, counselors and nurses, purchasing and implementing screening tools and more. The funding would be disbursed on a per-pupil basis to districts.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Increases funding to $328 million for 2023-2024 and includes school safety as allowable expenses (repealing Sec 97).
Secs. 32d and 39 – Great Start Readiness Program
Governor: Increases funding for the Great Start Readiness Program by 5% to match the increase to the per-pupil foundation grant and maintains the full-day rate at the same amount of $9,608. The part-day rate is set at $4,804. Expands eligibility to enroll from 250% to 300% of the federal poverty guidelines.
House: Increases funding for the Great Start Readiness Program by 4% to match the increase to the per-pupil foundation grant and maintains the full-day rate at the same amount of $9,516. The part-day rate is set at $4,758. Expands eligibility to enroll from 250% to 275% of the federal poverty guidelines.
Senate: Increases funding for the Great Start Readiness Program by 6% to match the increase to the per-pupil foundation grant and maintains the full-day rate at the same amount of $9,700. The part-day rate is set at $4,850.
Sec. 32p – ISD early childhood programs
Governor: Increases funding by $13.5 million to $26.9 million for ISD early childhood programs for children from birth through age 8. The funding is to both support the programs and increase the number of eligible children who are enrolled; $4.5 million must be used for providing home visits to at-risk children and their families and $4 million must be used to improve literacy for children ages birth to age 5 by enrolling them in services through the Dolly Parton Imagination Library.
House: Concurs with the Governor but increases funding by $18.5 million for ISD early childhood programs for children from birth through age 8.
Senate: Maintains current level of funding at $13.4 million and $4.5 million must be used for providing home visits to at-risk children and their families
Sec. 35a – Third grade reading
Governor: Increases funding for this section by $15 million to increase the number of literacy coaches and the amount of the grant per ISD for the coaches.
House: : Increases funding for this section by $20.5 million.
Senate: Increases funding for this section by $25 million.
Sec. 35i – Early literacy hubs – NEW
Governor: Includes $1.2 million to create equitable access and a network of early literacy hubs across the state to help align literacy supports for children age 5 and younger.
House: Concurs with the Governor but funds it at $2.4 million.
Senate: Does not include.
Sec. 35j – Literacy improvements – NEW
Governor: Appropriates $300 million to improve literacy instructional practices in local districts and ISDs. The grant money would be available to increase professional development, do a needs assessment for staff and develop a comprehensive literacy system, among other things.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Did not include.
Sec. 41 – English Language Learners
Governor: Increases funding by $1.3 million, a 5% increase over last year.
House: Increases funding by $6.25 million and funds each composite score category as a percentage of the per-pupil allowance instead of a set amount.
Senate: Doubles the funding for this section to $53 million to increase the per-pupil funding per composite score category.
Sec. 51e – Special education funding
Governor: Increases funding for special education programs to 87.5% of the target foundation allowance or $8,407 per pupil.
House: Increases funding for special education programs to 100% of the pupils’ foundation allowance costs.
Senate: Increases funding for special education programs to 100%of the pupils’ foundation allowance costs.
Sec. 54d – Early On
Governor: Increases funding by $1.1 million for Early On programs for children from birth to age 3 with a developmental delay, disability or both.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Increases funding by $1.3 million.
Sec. 61c – CTE equipment
Governor: Increases funding for eligible career education planning districts by $7.5 million to update career and technical education equipment.
House: Concurs with the Governor but removes requirement that 50% of the funds go to a program located in an ISD that does not levy a vocational millage.
Senate: Concurs with the Governor.
Sec. 67f – FAFSA incentives – NEW
Governor: Includes $15 million for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid completion challenge. Eligible districts would receive $50 for each 12th grade student who completes the FAFSA by June 30, 2024.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Did not include.
Sec. 74b – Michigan Clean School Bus grant program – NEW
Governor: Establishes the grant program with $150 million for districts to convert or replace current school buses with low to no greenhouse gas emission buses. The grants would be allocated by the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.
House: Concurs with Governor.
Senate: Establishes the program but with $75 million.
Sec. 81 – ISD funding
Governor: Increases funding to ISDs by $3.8 million for a 5% increase over last year. Removes the requirement to include public school academies in all sponsored activities or meetings or lose funding.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Increase funding by $4.5 million for a 6% increase to match the per-pupil increase percentage.
Sec. 97 – School safety grants
Governor: Doubles the funding for this section to $300 million for per-pupil payments to districts and nonpublic schools over two years to be used to increase school safety. Allowable uses include coordination with law enforcement, training on threat assessments, safety infrastructure and more.
House: Concurs with the Governor and adds school resource officers as allowable expenses.
Senate: Does not include, moves language to Sec 31aa.
Sec. 97g – Cybersecurity risk assessments – NEW
Governor: Includes $9 million for local districts or ISDs to contract with eligible providers to provide a cybersecurity risk assessment. The grants would be capped at $10,000 per local or ISD.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Did not include.
Sec. 147 – MPSERS rates
Governor: Makes annual adjustments to all rates.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Concurs with the Governor.
Sec. 147a – MPSERS offset
Governor: Increases the offset for district retirement costs to $112 million, increases reimbursement for normal costs to reflect new policy and establishes calculations for the offset amount for local districts, ISDs and libraries.
House: Maintains current year appropriation for payroll costs and agrees with Governor to increase the reimbursement for normal costs. Also funds an offset for ISDs and districts libraries at $24 million over 2 years.
Senate: Concurs with the Governor
Sec. 147c – MPSERS rate cap
Governor: Increases the average rate cap per-pupil amount by $115 to $1,157 and sets the rate cap per pupil for districts to a range of $4-$5,020. Also allocates $202 million to change the payroll growth assumption to 0.75%.
House: Concurs with the Governor.
Senate: Concurs with the Governor.
The next Consensus Revenue Estimating Conference will be May 19, 2023 and that will give the Legislature and the Governor the most current revenue figures with which to set the final budget. We will keep you informed as the budget continues to move through the process.
If you have questions, please feel free to contact us.