Executive Viewpoint

A Few Updates From The Capitol City

Dr. Mike Hernandez, AAEA Executive Director

Even though we are not in a legislative session this year, there is plenty of work going on in the Capitol City. Many meetings are being held by various groups, legislators, state agencies, and several others trying to develop rules based on past legislation or preparing new policy recommendations for future sessions. This time is an excellent opportunity to schedule some meetings with your local elected officials and discuss the positive things going on in your district and other areas of concern that could be addressed in the future. Many of you reported having some great conversations that hopefully will bear fruit in the coming days. Here are a few updates on topics of interest.

Adequacy Study

The adequacy study began in January and is in full swing. In recent meetings, legislators heard from the Bureau of Legislative Research about the history of Lake View and the current funding mechanism for how schools are funded. There have also been reports about ALE and Health Insurance. The next meeting is scheduled for March 11th at 10:00 am. The meeting will include reports about resource allocation, which is basically how the schools are spending money. These reports are always helpful to get a state-wide perspective on how the various funds are allocated. The study will continue throughout the summer and finish before the final report is due in November. Reviewing these meetings and understanding what is being reported and what questions or concerns legislators have about school operations is essential. This information helps you better communicate or clarify your specific circumstances with your local legislators. The reports will be updated regularly on the BLR Adequacy website, which can be found here.

Elections

As you know, we are in the primary early voting period for many elected offices around the state. The U.S. presidential race will command most of the attention, but there are other important races in our state, such as school boards, state representatives, and senators. A significant amount of ballot issues may also be on the November ballot. The UA Extension has an excellent website that tracks information on the ballot issues among other items. The Secretary of State has a website listing all the candidates who have filed to run for most offices. It is always important to stay informed on these issues and, of course, to Go Vote!

Rules

The Arkansas Learns Act is the legislation that has the most attention and effort in the rulemaking process. You can keep up with the current work by checking out the DESE website on LEARNS. It is full of information about many things, including meeting resources from the various working groups. Several Commissioner’s Memos have been released over the last few months and have given guidance to implement multiple facets of the LEARNS Act. These are tutoring programs, education freedom accounts, community service, and updates on assessment. Other DESE rules being considered can continuously be tracked on the website, including hearing dates and places for public comment.

ATRS is also amending several rules due to recent legislation, but also to put in a uniform format with other state agencies. These rule changes have been approved by the ATRS Board and are scheduled for legislative review on Monday, March 4th, at 2:00 pm. Remember that the rules are often more important than the legislation and can clarify the implementation in practice.

Fiscal Session

The 2024 Fiscal Session is scheduled to kick off on April 10th at noon. The budget hearings will begin in March in preparation for the fiscal session. The Department of Education Budget and Public School Fund are scheduled to have their hearing on March 7th beginning at 9:00 am after DHS. At this point, nothing is definitive regarding additional education-related topics surfacing during the fiscal session, but anything is possible. We will continue to monitor and listen for any changes. Let us know if you hear anything being discussed as a potential fiscal session issue.

Miscellaneous

The ALC Executive Subcommittee is doing significant work to study the facilities issuance program. The final report should be completed soon. The next meeting of the subcommittee is March 14th at noon. We should be nearing a recommendation from the group hired to do the study. Based on the recent presentation, it appears that we will have a combined insurance system that will include state agencies and higher education institutions. The timeline for the implementation of the potential change is still being determined. More information will come on this topic, so stay tuned.

There is always something going on in the Capitol City. It is undoubtedly a great place to be, and we take pride in serving the leaders of our state education system. Spring Break is a short few weeks away. I hope you find some time to unplug and enjoy some time away. Let us know how we can help you!