Alaska House Education Committee hears proposed amendments, public testimony for HB 392

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (KTVF) – On Monday, April 8, the House Education Committee delved into House Bill 392, which is being presented as an omnibus bill covering many of the issues facing education this year.

It took center stage following the legislature’s narrow sustaining of Governor Mike Dunleavy’s veto of the previous omnibus education bill, SB 140.

HB 392 carries many of the same items as SB 140, including a $680 increase to the Base Student Allocation (BSA) and the creation of a state position supporting charter schools in the state.

It also adds a number of the governor’s legislative priorities, including funding for payments to help recruit and retain teachers in Alaska.

A series of 14 amendments were put forward by Representatives Rebecca Himschoot and Andi Story.

Two were withdrawn, while one passed without objection.

The other 11 failed in a vote of 4 to 3, with the same four representatives voting down each amendment.

Two of the amendments would have added to the BSA increase, one by $120 , the other by $733.

Speaking in favor of the former, Democrat Story of Juneau said, “This will really reassure our staff, which we desperately want to keep our teaching staff and our paraprofessionals, and let our parents know that yes, we are going to fund education this year with our $680 increase, and we are going to increase our funding for next year.”

Republican Tom McKay, who objected to the amendment, said, “The underlying bill that we’re proposing already contains a $680 BSA increase which is the largest in state history, and as you recall, when we started the session, the BSA increase that was being discussed was $340, so we’ve already doubled that in the legislative process that we’ve been going through for approximately 90 days now.”

The other amendments varied in their scope, from correspondence school funding to charter school approval, to increased funding for children struggling with reading, to inflation-proofing the BSA.

There was some confusion about whether public testimony would be heard, and following consideration of these amendments, the committee heard from several interested Alaskans.

One testifier discussed the possibility of school districts sharing half-empty buildings with Charter Schools.

The majority spoke in favor of increased education funding.

One in-person testifier, Lisa Parady, serves as the Executive Director for the Alaska Council of School Administrators. She said she appreciates “the amendments that were brough forward trying to inflation-proof it. We know that the actual inflation-proof number is $1413 that you’ve heard from your constituencies, a more accurate reflection of where we would be had we been receiving support over the last decade, so that number is more akin to the actual number, but $680 is a great start and we are grateful for it.”

The committee voted 5 to 2 to approve its substitute and send it forward..

HB 392 next heads to the House Finance Committee.

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