Brown’s line-item vetoes eliminate equalization money for special ed
Among the line-item vetoes imposed on the final state budget by Gov. Jerry Brown is one that will eliminate what was hoped to be a first step in equalizing funding among special education programs statewide.
Just as the new budget seeks to streamline a complex funding system for schools overall, the 2013-14 spending plan also calls for consolidation of a number of programs and the elimination of restrictions on the use of that money.
But because of long-standing provisions that resulted in uneven funding, allocation of state and federal funds to Special Education Local Planning Areas varies greatly – from $570 per average daily attendance to about $1,090, according to the non-partisan Legislative Analyst.
As part of the effort to distribute money more equitably,the Legislature has set aside $30 million to begin addressing the funding variance between SELPAs. The LAO estimates that if the state were to adopt funding rates to ensure that 90 percent of the state’s students with disabilities were supported the same, it would cost about $300 million.
And that’s exactly what Brown took out of the final budget with his blue pencil.
In his veto message, Brown said the additional funding created cost pressures to meet other demands including