On Friday afternoon, Representative Conlon (Chair, House Education Committee) provided the Senate Education Committee with an overview of their committee bill, H.461.

One of the major topics in the bill is the common chart of accounts software, termed the Shared School District Data Management System (SSDDMS), which has been a failure in both large and small school districts. The Agency of Education (AOE) tried to fix it, but now they are recommending the state cut its losses. The House agreed.

The bill also includes an overhaul to the home study statutes, which was requested by AOE.

Finally, the bill also extends the Ethnic and Equity Studies working group timeline. Conlon noted that the date changes in the bill align with their extended deadline for the completion of the groups work, and their funding was already extended as well.

Chairman Campion shared that this will come back to the House, in an ideal world, with some Career and Technical education (CTE) items, literacy and financial literacy, as well as driver education reforms. Conlon wondered if they had jurisdiction on last item. Campion agreed that was a great question, but that per statute, it belonged to them (the education committees). 

Senator Hashim mentioned that some members of the Committee would like to see part of the funding come from the Agency of Transportation also.