newsminer.com

While it’s likely that extra money for K-12 education this year will just come through the capital budget, a bill providing the money is quietly moving along. HB 386, sponsored by Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux, R-Kodiak, moved out of the House Health, Education, and Social Services Committee yesterday.

LeDoux’s original idea was to cover half of the total fuel costs for school districts for fiscal years 2007, 2008, and 2009. A fiscal note estimated the cost of the program at $120 million for just two of the three years. That’s compared to the roughly $20 million lawmakers are considering with other proposals, including one by Sen. Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel, that would also come in the form of fuel grants.

The version of LeDoux’s bill that passed out of committee was significantly smaller. Instead of covering half of the total fuel costs for three years, it would cover the increase in fuel costs from fiscal year 2007 to 2008 and again from 2008 to 2009.

In addition to how much money schools will get is the question of how the money will be distributed. Rural districts would generally do better with fuel grants, while urban districts would get more out of some kind of per-student grant, which lawmakers are also considering.