Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton released his 2018-19 biennial budget plan on January 24. The proposed budget includes an increase of $609 million overall for E-12 education. This includes a per-pupil funding increase of 2 percent in each of the next two years.
The Governor’s budget proposal also includes $40 million in additional funding to decrease the cross-subsidy schools face as they shift money from their general unreserved funds to cover deficits in special education. This extra funding for special education would reduce the cross-subsidy by about 3 percent.
Other key areas of the education budget proposal include:
- Expansion of voluntary pre-K – $75 million
- Pension aid to pay for the employer contribution increases to address the Teachers Retirement Association (TRA) unfunded liability – $68.5 million
- Online Individual Education Plan system – build at MN Dept of Education – $1.4 million
- Help Me Grow (resources for families to understand developmental milestones and learn if there are concerns)–$3 million
- Transformation Zones and Education Partnerships – $1 million
- Increased aid for four Bureau of Indian Education schools – $4.4 million
- Counselor and other support services grants – $4 million
- Full-service community schools – $2 million
- Debt Service equalization –$18 million
- Technology at MN Dept of Education (mainframe to collect data and pay districts) – $3.2 million
Watch the MNPTA website, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for updates as the governor’s budget moves through the legislative process.
