A good column on HB 704 from the Reading Eagle‘s David Mekeel:

David Mekeel: Changes to special ed-funding needed

For two decades, public school districts have received state funding for special education the same way.

State Rep. P. Michael Sturla hopes to change that.

The Lancaster County Democrat has authored a bill that would fundamentally change special-education funding – eventually.

“The system has basically been flawed since it was changed 20 years ago,” Sturla said. “It makes the incorrect assumption that 16 percent of all students across the board have special needs.”

The York Dispatch’s Education Reporter Andrew Shaw published a story Monday on the House passage of HB 704:

Special_ed_funding_change_passes_in_Pa._House

Read the full story:

Special ed funding change passes in Pa. House

ANDREW SHAW | The York Dispatch

Updated:06/28/2010 01:04:41 PM EDT

Special education funding reform is now before the state Senate after a bill that would greatly change the funding formula was passed by the House.

The House last week overwhelmingly approved a bill, 173-25, that would move Pennsylvania away from a flat funding method.

State Rep. Will Tallman, R-Reading Township, was the lone York County dissenter.

Tallman said he supports increased special education funding but believes the state is adding too much additional oversight.

School districts have been getting special education funding based on the assumption each district has 16 percent of its total enrollment in special education. That formula has been in place since 1991, according to state Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, who developed the bill.

Under the proposed legislation, school districts would receive funding based on the number of special-education students they have, as well as on factors such as district poverty level.

Special education funding reform is “long overdue,” says the Beaver County Times in their editorial from Sunday, June 27, 2010:

It’s about time

Bill alters special-ed funding

Sunday, June 27, 2010

By BRIAN WALLACE, Lancaster Intelligencer Journal Staff Writer

The state House has approved a new funding formula for special-education services, but the bill doesn’t include the mandated funding increases hoped for by some school officials and advocates for the disabled.

In fact, the bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Mike Sturla of Lancaster, said state special-ed subsidies are likely to be frozen at 2008-09 levels for the next two years.

What House Bill 704 would do is assure that whatever money is available for special-education services each year goes to the school districts that need it most, Sturla said.

An excellent Op-Ed from Greg Knox of the Arc appeared in Sunday’s York Daily Record:

Education bill needed
GREG KNOX

Elected officials in Harrisburg are demonstrating that they certainly can act as responsible public servants. In a time of political turmoil, that’s a very good sign.

What is bringing out the best in our leaders in the state Capitol? A bill addressing the educational needs of students with disabilities — House Bill 704.

This bill shouldn’t have a chance, given the difficulties of state government in these days. But the bill is only days away from being approved by the House of Representatives and moving on to prompt consideration in the Senate.

In a time when partisan tensions are common, HB 704 has 66 cosponsors from both parties and was approved by a bipartisan vote of 22 to 3 in the House Education Committee.

THE TOP PRIORITY REMAINS MAKING CALLS TO YOUR STATE REPRESENTATIVE.  SEE BELOW.

The whole State House of Representatives continues to move closer to a vote on House Bill 704. This is our legislation for reform of the state systems for special education funding and accountability.

Prior to this historic vote, a few extra days are needed for the bill sponsors to negotiate amendments with some other House members.

We have worked to develop and support HB 704 for nearly two years. This is a monumental step for students with disabilities and their schools.

Thank you for helping our online petition to gain more than 1,400 signatures. Forward this alert to others to add more signatures and comments to the petition.

Please take the following actions ASAP:

Contact Your State Representative

• Locate your state representative and contact information here — http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/find.cfm.
• Call his or her Harrisburg office.
• Leave a phone message using the following talking points.
• Ask the state representative to call you back.
• Also send an e-mail using and personalizing the talking points. Call first.
• Do not call state senators or other officials.

Talking Points

1. Please vote for House Bill 704 when it comes to the House floor.  HB 704 deserves your support and a vote without amendments.
2. I am asking you to support reform of the state funding and accountability system for special education.
3. HB 704 has 66 bipartisan cosponsors. It was approved 22-3 by the House Education Committee.
4. The current funding system is broken, is unfair, and does not provide enough resources for special education in the right places. It sets the number of students eligible for state funding for special education at 16% regardless of whether the district has fewer or more students receiving special education. It also does not focus the funding on strategies that have a track record for improving student performance.
5. The school districts you represent need additional resources and support from the state.
6. I am your constituent and I have personal experience with how this broken system hurts children with disabilities and all students. (Describe your experience.)
7. Thank you for supporting this important issue and voting for HB 704 this week.

Extra Help and Follow Up

For extra help, call Baruch Kintisch (215-238-6970 x 320) or Sandy Zelno (412-255-6414).

Send us an e-mail and let us know how your phone calls, e-mails, and letters turn out.

Additional Resources:

Summary of HB 704 (two-page summary)

Q&A on Special Education Funding Reform (4-page detailed information)

Thank you for getting involved and making good things happen for children with disabilities and all children.

Show your support. Sign our petition to help special education in Pennsylvania.

JUNE 1 UPDATE
More than ever, we need you and your friends to contact your state representatives this week and tell them to vote for House Bill 704.  With your help, we can win this vote and have some good news for a change!  See the details below, including action steps and talking points.

Please enter your name on our online petition to support House Bill 704.  It takes two minutes.  You can even write a short comment for others to see.  Everyone can place their name on the petition, including students, parents, educators, advocates, and others.  FORWARD THIS ASAP TO YOUR FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES SO THAT WE CAN GENERATE LOTS OF SIGNATURES.

Let us know what else we can do to help.

Hurry up and wait.  An unfortunate but sometimes necessary part of human existence, supermarket lines, and political reality in Harrisburg.

HB 704, the bill on special education funding and accountability reforms, was scheduled for a vote in the whole State House of Representatives on Wednesday, May 26.  The vote has been rescheduled for Tuesday or Wednesday, June 8 or 9.

PLEASE CONTACT YOUR STATE REPRESENTATIVE ASAP. We need your help to get calls, e-mails, or letters to every state representative.  Click here for talking points and actions that you can take to help the House vote for and pass HB 704 on June 8 or 9.

Click here to see a more detailed explanation of the two-week delay and a list of amendments intended by some representatives for HB 704.  If your state representative is sponsoring one of these amendments, you may want to call him or her to express your concerns – HB 704 deserves their support and a vote without amendments.

For extra help, call or e-mail Baruch Kintisch (215-238-6970 x 320) or Sandy Zelno (412-255-6414).

Additional Resources:

Summary of HB 704 (two-page summary)

Q&A on Special Education Funding Reform (4-page detailed information)

Thank you for getting involved and making good things happen for children with disabilities and all children.

HB 704, the bill on special education funding and accountability reforms, was scheduled for a vote in the whole State House of Representatives on Wednesday, May 26.  The vote has been rescheduled for Tuesday or Wednesday, June 8 or 9.

The biggest reason for the delay is that there is disagreement within both political parties about a tax increase bill (HB 2435).  That bill, along with our special education bill, was scheduled for a vote on May 26.  Due to the lack of consensus on the tax bill, no significant bills were allowed to come up for a vote – including our special education bill.

The second reason for the delay is a set of amendments announced for HB 704.  Legislators must pre-announce their amendments, and several amendments were listed for consideration on HB 704.  Three of these intended amendments – listed below – are not related to special education in any way, but they are being used to get attention for other controversial issues.  The House leaders would prefer for these intended amendments to be withdrawn before HB 704 comes up for debate and a vote on the floor of the House.  Whether our organizations agree or disagree with the subject matter of these three amendments, we do not want them to stand in the way of the interests of students with disabilities.  HB 704 deserves a fair vote on June 8 or 9 without unrelated amendments and without further delay.

Amendment 7143.  Announced by Representative Saylor (R-York County). This amendment would stop the new high-stakes graduation tests being implemented by the state.

Amendment 7144.  Announced by Representative Clymer (R-Bucks County). This amendment would make changes to pre-kindergarten, Head Start, and other early learning programs.

Amendment 7149.  Announced by Representative Miller (R-York County). This amendment would renew and modify state rules for how school districts can ask the Department of Education for waivers from contracting mandates and other legal requirements.

There are also a few additional amendments announced for consideration when HB 704 is debated on June 8 or 9.  The following amendments are related to special education funding and accountability.  The sponsors of HB 704 are talking to the legislators offering these amendments to reach consensus on the issues or perhaps withdraw the amendments.

Amendments 7145 and 7148.  Announced by Representative O’Neill (R-Bucks County). This amendment would remove from HB 704 some of the improvements in the Contingency Fund, which provides resources for districts to help students with very expensive disabilities.  The amendment would treat all districts equally, regardless of poverty or best practices.

Amendment 7146.  Announced by Representative Rapp (R-Forrest & Warren Counties). This amendment would remove from HB 704 a performance variable that would give school districts additional funding for meeting both inclusion and achievement targets for students with disabilities. (About 110 districts would meet these targets in the first year and on average would each receive a total of about $60,000 as an incentive to continue their improved performance.  This modest factor in the new formula would not change IDEA law or the authority of IEP teams for the placement of students.)

Amendment 7147.  Announced by Representative Tallman (R-Adams & York Counties). This amendment would remove from HB 704 the entire section on accountability. (The accountability provisions are intended to ensure that state funding for special education is invested by local schools for the benefit of students with disabilities.  This part of the bill strengthens the existing three-year plans that districts are already required to file with the state.  The General Assembly adopted similar accountability rules for basic education in 2008.)

Amendment 7172.  Announced by Rep. Maher (R-Allegheny & Washington Counties). This amendment would remove from HB 704 the three-variable formula for distributing state funding for special education and replace it with a twelve-variable formula.  The amendment would give a different funding weight to each kind of disability. (The three-variable formula in HB 704 is designed to accurately distribute state funding based on student and district needs, while protecting against incentives for schools to over-identify children or manipulate the system.)

If your state representative is sponsoring one of these amendments, you may want to call him or her to express your concerns – HB 704 deserves their support and a vote without amendments.  Click here for talking points and actions that you can take to help the House vote for and pass HB 704 on June 8 or 9.

For extra help, call or e-mail Baruch Kintisch (215-238-6970 x 320) or Sandy Zelno (412-255-6414).

Additional Resources:

Summary of HB 704 (two-page summary)

Q&A on Special Education Funding Reform (4-page detailed information)

Thank you for getting involved and making good things happen for children with disabilities and all children.