Senate Education & Early Dev. FSC, 4/16/26, 5:30pm

Good evening. I will call to order the Senate Finance Subcommittee on the Department of Education and Early Development's budget. It is, let's see, Thursday, I think, April 16th. It is 5:30 PM. I am joined by Senator Stevens, Senator Tobin.

Senator Yunt is excused today, not able to join us. We have briefed him on the proposed closeout. Our purpose this afternoon, this evening, is to close out our subcommittee's work and forward a recommendation to the full Finance Committee. I'd like to invite my finance aide, Ella Adkisson, to the table to run through the report.

Ms. Adkisson. Thank you, Mr. Chair. For the record, Ella Adkisson, staff to Senator Kiel. The Senate Finance Budget Subcommittee for the Department of Education and Early Development submits the following fiscal year '27 recommendations to the Senate Finance Committee.

A budget with total funds of $440,961,100.

Of that, unrestricted general funds represent $100,825,900. Designated general funds are $38,364,600. Other funds are $38,416,300.

And federal funds represent $267,354,300. For position count, we are recommending a total of 307 positions. 281 Of those are permanent full-time, 10 are permanent part-time, and 16 are temporary. The Senate Finance Subcommittee report accepts many items requested in the governor's amended budget, including $771,200 in unrestricted general funds for the new Lake and Peninsula Residential School, $3,293,800 in higher education investment funds for increased Alaska Performance Scholarships, along with the corresponding $1,646,900 increase in higher education investment funds for the Alaska Education Grants. After careful consideration, the report recommends a reduction in funding for the Boarding Home Program by $53,400 in unrestricted general funds, adding a matching increment for the purpose of commission travel to rural school districts, which was funded at $0 in FY '26.

This decrement leaves enough in the Boarding Home Program to support 3 students. The subcommittee also recommends reducing the Residential Schools Program by $1,646,000 in unrestricted general funds to match the projected expenditures based on historic lapse. Also recommends reducing facilities leases by $220,000— $220,400 to match actual costs. The report also adds $450,000 in unrestricted general funds for teacher incentive payments and reimbursements for national board certification under a piece of legislation that passed into law but remains unfunded. And to properly meet the required match for Head Start grants, the report adds $2 million in unrestricted general funds.

Lastly, the report recommends funding a general maintenance lead position for Mt. Edgecomb High School at $123,700 of unrestricted general funds. That's all I have, Mr. Chair, and I'm happy to take questions. Are there questions from subcommittee members?

Seeing and hearing none, Senator Stevens. Mr. Chairman, I move the attached budget action and wordage reports from the Senate Budget Subcommittee for the Department of Education and Early Development I further move that the subcommittee authorize Legislative Finance and Legislative Legal to make any technical or conforming changes as necessary. Before I ask if there's any objection, I'll just ask if the folks from the department have anything they need to say. Okay. Is there any objection to the motion?

Seeing and hearing none, the motion is adopted. That concludes the business of the subcommittee this afternoon. I want to thank I neglected earlier to thank Susan Quigley, our LIO moderator, who has the sound on. I want to thank very much Connor Bell, our finance analyst with the Legislative Finance Division, who has coached my office through a number of errors I made to get us a clean closeout. I appreciate that.

And of course, Ms. Atkisson on my staff, who has worked diligently with the department, whose work and cooperation I also appreciate very much. There being nothing further to come before the subcommittee, We are adjourned at 5:34 PM. Thank you, Mr. Chair.