OFFICE OF FISCAL ANALYSIS Legislative Office Building, Room 5200 Hartford, CT 06106 (860) 240-0200 http://www.cga.ct.gov/ofa sHB-6880 AN ACT CONCERNING ASSORTED REVISIONS AND ADDITIONS TO THE EDUCATION STATUTES. Primary Analyst: DD 4/12/23 Contributing Analyst(s): CG Reviewer: SB OFA Fiscal Note State Impact: Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 24 $ FY 25 $ Education, Dept. GF - Cost See Below See Below Note: GF=General Fund Municipal Impact: Municipalities Effect FY 24 $ FY 25 $ Local and Regional School Districts Cost Potential Minimal Potential Minimal Explanation Explanation The bill makes several changes regarding the State Department of Education and local and regional school districts which result in the below impacts. The bill also makes changes to the Teachers' Retirement System, as described below. Sections 1 and 2 require school districts to post and make available certain information regarding their curriculum and school food nutritional value. This is anticipated to result in minimal printing costs to districts. Section 3 allows a public school student who is a father under age 17 to attend adult education classes. This has no fiscal impact as the eligibility expansion is not anticipated to significantly increase the cost of administering adult education programs. 2023HB-06880-R000590-FN.DOCX Page 2 of 3 Section 4 specifies the student eligibility for participation in remote learning and extends the deadline for the State Department of Education to submit a plan for a remote learning school by six months. This has no fiscal impact as it is not anticipated to impact the cost of developing the plan, if any. To the extent that the bill limits what students are eligible to participate in remote learning, any impact this has on the cost of administering a remote learning school will depend on the plan ultimately developed by SDE. Section 5 requires local and regional boards of education to make information relating to regular or special meetings available on the Internet web site of such boards. This has no fiscal impact as it is anticipated that local and regional boards of education can meet this requirement with existing resources. Section 6 results in a minimal cost, estimated to be less than $10,000 per district annually beginning in FY 24, by establishing a parent advisory committee and a teacher advisory committee for SDE, and requiring certain related reimbursements for participants. SDE is required to provide reimbursements for: (1) expenses incurred by committee members in performing their duties, and (2) any expense incurred by a local and regional school district for substitute teachers hired while a member of the teacher advisory committee is performing their duties. Section 7 results in a potential cost to local and regional school districts by expanding required training for school personnel to include emergency response to a student having a seizure. Any cost is anticipated to be minimal, associated with printing materials and with overtime coverage for staff to attend training. Section 8 requires SDE to conduct certain grant management activities for the After School program grant. Correspondingly, the bill increases, from 4% to 7.5%, the amount of After School program grant funding that the State Department of Education may retain for program 2023HB-06880-R000590-FN.DOCX Page 3 of 3 administration. In FY 23, this would have resulted in an approximately $200,000 increase in the amount SDE may have retained from $230,000 to $430,000, and a commensurate decrease in the amount of funds provided to qualifying districts. Sections 9 and 10 result in an indeterminate cost to the State Department of Education to by requiring the agency to provide sufficient funding to the quasi-public State Education Resource Center (SERC). The bill does not appropriate any funding for this purpose. Although there is not currently a direct appropriation to SERC, it receives most of its support from SDE and federal grant funding. The bill also exempts SERC from certain requirements regarding real estate transactions and procurement. This has no fiscal impact, as it does not change state funding levels for SERC. Section 11 delays, from FY 24 to FY 25, the cost to local and regional school districts of providing free menstrual products in certain restrooms. This does not change the overall cost of providing such products. Section 12 and 13 make changes to the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) statutes, including requiring the Teachers’ Retirement Board to classify schools operated by Goodwin University Magnet Schools and Goodwin University Educational as public schools, that are not anticipated to result in a fiscal impact. Teachers in schools operated by Goodwin University Magnet Schools and Goodwin University Educational Service currently participate in the TRS through LEARN Regional Educational Services Center. The Out Years State Impact: See Above Municipal Impact: See Above