Members of the Select Committee on Education say they will dive into the special education formula during the 2024 legislative session. 

But the legislator responsible for calling a meeting of a special education task force prior to the session says she won’t do that.  

State Rep. Kristey Williams, R-Augusta, said most of her emails said the Legislature should fund the special education formula as required by law. But, she said, the issues are broader than that. 

She said the special education statutes need an overhaul, “...especially the funding. I’ll tell you what, there is no way that a funding task force could begin to crack that code.” She recommended an overhaul of the special education funding system by 2027. 

Williams, who also chairs the Select Committee on Education, did invite testimony on special education, including special education stakeholders, during one meeting of the select committee. The special education task force, which was set up by the education bill approved by the Legislature last session, would have included special education experts and stakeholders. It was to study and hold hearings to receive input from subject matter experts and the public at large and make recommendations to the 2024 Legislature.  

Under the bill, Williams was supposed to convene the task force, which would then vote for a chairperson. It appeared by the makeup of the committee, a chairperson other than Williams would have been selected. 

For years, school districts have asked the Legislature to approve 92% of excess costs for special education as is required by state law. The Legislature has failed to do that for more than a decade, and the current level of funding is 69 percent of excess costs. The shortfall, about $200 million, affects all students because districts must transfer general education funds to pay for required special education services. 

Last session, Williams and other legislative leaders refused a phased-in solution to cover the funding gap and instead called for the creation of a special education task force to study the issue.  

After four days of meetings, the Select Committee also said it would work during the legislative session to make sure at-risk funding is used to help at-risk students, address reports of significant student behavioral problems and ensure that preschoolers are evaluated for special education issues. Several members said they would like to try to advance legislation that would set up taxpayer-paid private and homeschool vouchers.  

Watch the committee meeting here. The committee’s discussion on what members want to work on in the next legislative session starts around the 3:27:41 mark.