Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
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State of Arkansas 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1539 3
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By: Representatives A. Collins, D. Garner, Gonzales Worthen, McCullough, Springer 5
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO AMEND THE PUBLIC SCHOOL FUNDING ACT OF 9
2003; TO ADD AN ADDITIONAL EDUCATION CATEGORY OF 10
FUNDING FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION; AND FOR OTHER 11
PURPOSES. 12
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Subtitle 15
TO AMEND THE PUBLIC SCHOOL FUNDING ACT 16
OF 2003; AND TO ADD AN ADDITIONAL 17
EDUCATION CATEGORY OF FUNDING FOR 18
SPECIAL EDUCATION. 19
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 21
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SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Legislative findings and intent. 23
The General Assembly finds that: 24
(1) Under the Arkansas Constitution, the General Assembly must 25
provide funding for an adequate and equitable education for every child in 26
the State of Arkansas; 27
(2) To provide an adequate and equitable education for every 28
child in the state, the General Assembly should adopt the recommendations 29
presented by the House Committee on Education and Senate Committee on 30
Education in the 2024 Educational Adequacy Study final report for funding 31
public schools in the upcoming biennium, except in the areas of special 32
education, staff pay, and mental health; 33
(3) Special education funding should be increased and moved from 34
foundation funding to categorical funding; 35
(4) Special education is underfunded by the state according to 36 HB1539
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the 2024 Educational Adequacy Study, with seventy -two percent (72%) of 1
superintendents reporting that their school districts are in moderate or 2
extreme need of more funding for special education teachers; 3
(5) Special education funds are currently allocated by the 4
number of students in a school district rather than the number of students 5
with special needs in a school district, leading to a mismatch of funds; 6
(6) Special education funds are part of foundation funding, 7
meaning they do not currently have to be spent on special education, but if 8
they were categorical funds, they would have to be spent on only special 9
education; 10
(7) Public school classified staff members should get a real 11
raise; 12
(8) Public school classified staff members are vital members of 13
a learning community and are often underpaid; 14
(9) Inadequate pay for public school classified staff members 15
negatively impacts a public school district's ability to recruit and retain 16
quality public school classified staff members, which negatively impacts the 17
student experience, school morale, and educational outcomes; 18
(10)(A) In 2023, the General Assembly approved foundation 19
funding, including what the biennial matrix called a “$2 salary increase”, 20
for public school classified staff members. 21
(B) Despite approving a salary increase, there was enough 22
money allocated for only five and four -tenths (5.4) full-time equivalent 23
classified staff members per five hundred (500) students, whereas there are 24
actually twenty-nine and eight-tenths (29.8) full-time equivalent public 25
school classified staff members per five hundred (500) students in Arkansas 26
public schools, meaning that the “$2 salary increase” was only a 30 cents 27
(30¢) per hour raise when spread among all full -time public school equivalent 28
classified staff members; 29
(11) The state should not only deliver on its previous promise 30
of funding a two dollars ($2.00) per hour raise for public school classified 31
staff members, but should catch up with inflation and deliver a four dollars 32
($4.00) per hour raise for public school classified staff members, ensuring 33
that the funding is there to pay every public school classified staff member 34
at least fifteen dollars ($15.00) per hour; 35
(12) Funding should be added for more counselors and social 36 HB1539
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workers in public schools; 1
(13) Mental health is a statewide crisis, especially among 2
youth; 3
(14) Public school counselors perform many functions that 4
directly and indirectly impact youth mental health, but due to limited public 5
school district funds and a statewide counselor shortage, public school 6
counselors are often overworked and asked to perform functions outside their 7
intended responsibilities; and 8
(15) The state should provide sufficient funding for either two 9
(2) counselors per five hundred (500) students or one (1) counselor and one 10
(1) social worker per five hundred (500) students to improve counselor 11
working conditions and student outcomes. 12
13
SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 6 -20-2305(a)(2), concerning per -student 14
foundation funding amounts under the Public School Funding Act of 2003, is 15
amended to read as follows: 16
(2)(A) For the 2023-2024 2025-2026 school year, the foundation 17
funding amount is equal to seven thousand six hundred eighteen dollars 18
($7,618) eight thousand one hundred sixty -five dollars ($8,165) multiplied by 19
the school district's average daily membership for the previous school year. 20
(B) For the 2024-2025 2026-2027 school year and each 21
school year thereafter, the foundation funding amount is equal to seven 22
thousand seven hundred seventy -one dollars ($7,771) eight thousand three 23
hundred sixty-one dollars ($8,361) multiplied by the school district's 24
average daily membership for the previous school year. 25
26
SECTION 3. Arkansas Code § 6 -20-2305(b)(2)(A), concernign alternative 27
learning environment funding under the Public School Funding Act of 2003, is 28
amended to read as follows: 29
(2)(A)(i) For the 2023-2024 2025-2026 school year, alternative 30
learning environment funding shall be four thousand nine hundred eighty -seven 31
dollars ($4,987) five thousand two hundred twelve dollars ($5,212) multiplied 32
by the number of identified alternative learning environment students 33
enrolled during the previous school year. 34
(ii) For the 2024-2025 2026-2027 school year, 35
alternative learning environment funding shall be five thousand eighty -six 36 HB1539
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dollars ($5,086) five thousand three hundred forty -one dollars ($5,341) 1
multiplied by the number of identified alternative learning environment 2
students enrolled during the previous school year. 3
(iii) Funding for students in alternative learning 4
environments shall be distributed based on rules promulgated by the State 5
Board of Education. 6
7
SECTION 4. Arkansas Code § 6 -20-2305(b)(3), concerning funding for 8
English learners under the Public School Funding Act of 2003, is amended to 9
read as follows: 10
(3)(A) For the 2023-2024 2025-2026 school year, funding for 11
students who are identified as English learners shall be three hundred sixty-12
six dollars ($366) three hundred seventy -five dollars ($375) for each 13
identified English learner. 14
(B) Funding for English learners shall be distributed to 15
public school districts for students who have been identified as not 16
proficient in the English language based upon a state -approved English 17
proficiency assessment instrument. 18
(C) Funds allocated for English learners to public school 19
districts under this subchapter shall be expended only for eligible 20
activities as identified in current rules promulgated by the State Board of 21
Education and are a supplement to funding for national school lunch students 22
provided in subdivision (b)(4) of this section. 23
(D) For the 2024-2025 2026-2027 school year and each 24
school year thereafter, funding for students who are identified as English 25
learners shall be three hundred sixty-six dollars ($366) three hundred eight-26
four dollars ($384) for each identified English learner. 27
28
SECTION 5. Arkansas Code § 6 -20-2305(b)(4)(A), concerning Enhanced 29
Student Achievement Funding under the Public School Funding Act of 2003, is 30
amended to read as follows: 31
(4)(A) Enhanced Student Achievement Funding for each identified 32
national school lunch student shall be as follows: 33
(i) For a public school district in which ninety 34
percent (90%) or more of the previous school year's enrolled students are 35
national school lunch students, the amount of per -student Enhanced Student 36 HB1539
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Achievement Funding for the 2023-2024 2025-2026 school year is one thousand 1
six hundred thirteen dollars ($1,613) one thousand six hundred fifty -three 2
dollars ($1,653) and for the 2024-2025 2026-2027 school year is one thousand 3
six hundred thirteen dollars ($1,613) one thousand six hundred ninety -four 4
dollars ($1,694); 5
(ii) For a public school district in which at least 6
seventy percent (70%) but less than ninety percent (90%) of the previous 7
school year's enrolled students are national school lunch students, the 8
amount of per-student Enhanced Student Achievement Funding for the 2023-2024 9
2025-2026 school year is one thousand seventy -six dollars ($1,076) one 10
thousand one hundred and three ($1,103) and for the 2024-2025 2026-2027 11
school year is one thousand seventy -six dollars ($1,076) one thousand one 12
hundred thirty dollars ($1,130) ; and 13
(iii) For a public school district in which less than 14
seventy percent (70%) of the previous school year's enrolled students are 15
national school lunch students, the amount of per -student Enhanced Student 16
Achievement Funding for the 2023-2024 2025-2026 school year is five hundred 17
thirty-eight dollars ($538) five hundred fifty-one dollars ($551) and for the 18
2024-2025 2026-2027 school year is five hundred thirty-eight dollars ($538) 19
five hundred sixty-five dollars ($565). 20
21
SECTION 6. Arkansas Code § 6 -20-2305(b)(5)(C)(i), concerning 22
professional development funding for professional learning communities under 23
the Public School Funding Act of 2003, is amended to read as follows: 24
(C)(i) For the 2023-2024 2025-2026 school year and each 25
school year thereafter, additional funding up to sixteen million five hundred 26
thousand dollars ($16,500,000) provided for professional development above 27
the amount in subdivision (b)(5)(A) of this section shall be used by the 28
Division of Elementary and Secondary Education for the development and 29
administration of professional learning communities for the benefit of public 30
school districts. 31
32
SECTION 7. Arkansas Code § 6 -20-2305(b)(6)(A), concerning the 33
statewide target average annual salary for teachers under the Public School 34
Funding Act of 2003, is amended to read as follows: 35
(6)(A)(i) Beginning with the 2021 -2022 school year, for school 36 HB1539
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districts identified by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education as 1
having an average annual teacher salary below the statewide target average 2
annual salary, teacher salary equalization funding shall be equal to one 3
hundred eighty-five dollars ($185) multiplied by the average daily membership 4
of the school district for the previous school year. 5
(ii) For the 2023-2024 2025-2026 and 2024-2025 2026-6
2027 school years, the statewide target average annual salary shall be fifty -7
one thousand eight hundred twenty -two dollars ($51,822). 8
(iii) The House Committee on Education and the Senate 9
Committee on Education shall set jointly the statewide target average annual 10
salary for the 2025-2026 2027-2028 and 2026-2027 2028-2029 school years, and 11
each biennium thereafter, as part of the adequacy review process required 12
under § 10-3-2102. 13
14
SECTION 8. Arkansas Code § 6 -20-2305(b), concerning education 15
categories of funding in addition to state foundation funding aid, is amended 16
to add an additional subdivision to read as follows: 17
(7)(A) For the 2025 -2026 school year and each school year 18
thereafter, special education funding shall be three thousand eight hundred 19
sixty-two dollars ($3,862) multiplied by the number of students who receive 20
special education and related services required by an individualized 21
education plan. 22
(B) Funding for students who receive special education and 23
related services required by an individualized education plan under 24
subdivision (b)(7)(A) of this section shall be distributed based on rules 25
promulgated by the state board. 26
(C) Funding for students who receive special education and 27
related services required by an individualized education plan shall not be 28
incorporated into the state foundation funding aid amount established under 29
subsection (a) of this section. 30
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