PAESSP Political Notes

May 28, 2004

     The Pennsylvania legislature has not been able to come to an agreement on a budget that is acceptable to the House of Representatives, the Senate and the Governor. It is expected that a conference committee of both House and Senate members and their staffs will try to put together a document by mid- to late June. Rumors continue that a piece of gaming legislation will emerge as a result of these budget package talks. The latest rumor is that 15 locations will be provided with slot machines. There is still discussion on the concept of going to a reduced amount on sales tax by doing away with current exemptions on such items as food and clothing. Education is not expected to come out of this budget with any new sources of funding other than what was previously proposed.

     Only the House was in session this past week. They approved HB 2178, which amends the PA School Code dealing with the issues of harassment and bullying. The House Education Committee amended and then approved SB 200, which would allow an annuitant to come back for more than 95 days without it affecting their annuity. This bill will need to pass the House and then return to the Senate before it could go to the Governor’s desk for signature into law.

     This week, the Pennsylvania Department of Education has announced its rollout of the new PSSA reports for parents and school officials by The Grow Network. This reporting system is expected to be more reader-friendly and easier to understand by both parents and administrators. The Department also announced this week a number of changes on how they calculate Average Yearly Progress (AYP) for No Child Left Behind (NCLB). Some of the changes include having a graduation rate of 80% and a student attendance rate of 90%. The changes still have to be approved by the federal government, but it is anticipated that this will not be a problem.

     The state legislators will return on Monday June 7, 2004.

     On the federal scene, the U.S. Senate passed the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The Senate and the House of Representatives will meet and try to come to an agreement on one bill, as the House version that passed in April and the Senate version that passed in May are different. Congress did reach an agreement on a fiscal year 2005 budget resolution for education. Now, the Senate and the House need to vote on the resolution and then the Appropriations Committee allocates the funds to the various education programs.