Nonprofit Mississippi News: Ask your state senator about the proposed education funding bill. Twenty Republican senators said in interviews this week they don’t have access to the Senate leadership plans for the House education funding bill. Add those 20 Republicans to the 19 Democrats who rarely consult on legislative plans, and you’ll find that at least 39 of 52 Mississippi state senators have no clue what will happen with education funding. This is more than a month into the legislative sessions. “I haven’t heard anything,” stated Sen. Chris Caughman (R-Mendenhall), vice-chairman for the Education Committee. “I think there are concerns that we are here and we haven’t done any, but my main point is that I want something that is good to all my districts. When asked if she was disappointed that Senate members had not heard details, Sen. Angela Burks Hill (R-Picayune) said that they have “kind of gotten used” to it. “My (school leaders), want to know what is expected, and I can’t give them much,” stated Sen. Chris Massey of R-Nesbit. He is also a member of the Education Committee. Other responses: Sen. Sally Doty (R-Brookhaven): “I haven’t heard anything, however, I’ve been in close touch with the superintendent from Brookhaven. Sen. John Polk (R-Hattiesburg): “I’m not on that inside right now.” Sen. Sally Doty, R.Brookhaven: “I’ve been in close contact with the superintendent from Brookhaven.” Sen. Josh Harkins (R-Flowood): “We don’t know what the final version will be.” All of us assume that there will be some. There is nothing but hearsay and rumors at the moment.” Sen. Philip Moran (Receiving numbers from Rep. Richard Bennett on his cell phone): “As long my school districts get more funding, I’m okay with it.” The other Republican Education Committee members, Sen. Briggs Hopson, R.Vicksburg, Sen. Billy Hudson R.Hattiesburg, and Sen. Kevin Blackwell R.Olive Branch, said that they hadn’t heard anything about what, if any, would be. The Education Committee’s four Democratic members — who have been largely excluded from major policy exchanges over the past six years due to Republicans holding a supermajority and not needing their votes in order to pass legislation — stated that they had not received any plans. With the exception of Senator Gray Tollison (R-Oxford), who has been vocal about education funding plans throughout the session, none of the 15 senators on the Senate Education committee had heard of any changes that the Senate might be asking for to the House bill. The House bill will likely be sent to the Senate Appropriations committee, Lt. Governor. Tate Reeves is yet to be assigned a formal assignment. The February 27 deadline is required to pass the plan. According to Senate leaders, the expectation is that the Senate will vote on a placeholder bill. This placeholder bill will contain few details. This would ensure that the bill is sent to a conference committee. The details of the bill would then be worked out behind closed doors over the weekend of March. It can be risky to ask a chamber of Congress to pass a placeholder bill. Many Republicans and rank-and-file House members indicated last year that they wouldn’t vote for a placeholder bill because of concerns about its impact on local school districts. That session saw the bill and the issue die. Even the Senate’s top leaders, who are often considered to be confidants of Reeves’, admit that they don’t know what will happen. “The process is set up in such a way that we don’t know yet how many money we’ll have (for next fiscal years),” said Senator Terry Burton, R. Newton. He is the Senate pro Tempore, who was elected by senators to be their leader. “We need a large number of people before we can make those decisions. We won’t have conference bill until the last weekend of March, so there’s plenty of time.” “I haven’t (heard any details),” said Senator Buck Clarke, R.Hollandale, Appropriations Chair and also a member on the Education Committee. “I am at about 40,000 feet when I’m watching the entire budget. How can we spread what we have the best? It always comes together.” However, the 20 Senate Republicans – many of them in Lt. Governor. This week, Tate Reeves, who chairs key committees and is the braintrust leader of Senate Republicans, told Mississippi Today that they have been unable provide any information about a new spending plan to respond to repeated requests from school leaders in their districts for information. The plan was not discussed by those who were asked. They referred their school leaders to the earlier year’s House information. Many said that they heard from Reeves or Tollison that some changes are being made to the House bill. Senator Brice Wiggins (R-Pascagoula), who is also on the Education Committee, responded to several questions regarding possible changes to the House bill with the same one-line answer: “There’s no Senate bill.” The Senate bill did not address the state’s public school funding formula. The only way to alter the formula is for the Senate to pass the House bill by February 27th, without or with amendments. Otherwise, the issue will die for the year. Tollison said on Thursday that he had not yet looked at the House plan. He said, “Now that the general bills have been cleared up, we will look into it more closely.” He was referring specifically to Thursday’s deadline that the Senate must act on all Senate bills. The House passed House Bill 957, a rewrite of the funding formula. The legislation, which was 354 pages long, took the House about five days to read through before it was passed by a narrow vote of 66 to 54. The Senate and the House have not agreed on the final product, despite assurances that the new formula for education funding is a joint effort. At the time that the House bill was passed, Speaker Philip Gunn (R-Clinton) stated that the legislation was a joint effort of the Senate and House. Leaders on the other side have not been clear about whether or not the bill would be amended or taken up. Laura Hipp, spokesperson of Lt. Governor, stated that the Senate and House leaders have been working together to create a new student-centered funding model since 2016. Recent weeks have seen Tate Reeves speak out. The Senate sent the bill to Tate Reeves on January 18, but it has not been assigned to a committee as of today. Hipp stated that education funding will be more effective if there are greater investments in education. However, he declined to give details when asked about Reeves’ plan. Hipp stated that Mississippi needs a school funding formula which focuses more on the needs and teachers of students and teachers than on increasing funds for administration. The Senate Democrats don’t have the same access as House members to information. Reeves even forbade EdBuild, a New Jersey-based school finance organization that had made recommendations last year for a new school funding formula, from meeting this session with Senate Democrats. Reeves’ decision came after a January meeting between EdBuild CEO Rebecca Sibilia, and House Democrats during which Sibilia expressed concern about Gunn’s bill. During a Jan. 11 meeting, Senate Democrats on education funding passed out a copy of the Mississippi Today article that Sibilia had with House Democrats. Sibilia pointed out that Gunn’s funding formula does not include one of her key recommendations, which was to eliminate the 27 percent rule. The 27 percent rule stipulates that no school district should bear more than 27 per cent of the public education costs. This requirement requires the state to fund property-rich districts. Some, like Sibilia, argue that local taxes could be used to raise funds instead. Last year’s efforts to reform the school funding formula were stopped due to concerns about the effects on local districts. Reeves’ move raises questions as to whether he is losing enthusiasm for school funding reform or is uncertain about House Bill 957, Gunn’s proposal. When asked why Reeves opposed a meeting between Sibilia senators and Democratic senators, Hipp stated that “every senator from both political parties had an opportunity to meet EdBuild to discuss the recommendations during the scope their contract last year.” Hipp stated in January that senators would have more opportunities to ask questions during the legislative session “about any Senate legislation regarding a new student-centered financing formula.” However, there is no bill currently before the Senate, so senators won’t be able to ask many questions, especially if major changes are made. In late 2016, the Legislature hired EdBuild to examine the Mississippi Adequate Education Program and make recommendations for a new school funding formula. Gunn published some of these recommendations in House Bill 957 in January 2017. To support this important work, you can make a regular donation to us today as part of the Spring Member Drive. 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