Researcher: JM Page 1 4/10/25
OLR Bill Analysis
sSB 1
AN ACT INCREASING RESOURCES FOR STUDENTS, SCHOOLS
AND SPECIAL EDUCATION.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
SUMMARY
§§ 1-11 — UNIVERSAL PRESCHOOL TRUST
Establishes the Universal Preschool Trust, funds it with transfers of unappropriated surplus,
and requires the state treasurer to administer and invest the trust’s funds; creates the Universal
Preschool Trust Board; allows funds in the trust to be used for expenses for early care and
education programs, the eligible categories of which expand in phases based on the trust’s rate
of return
§ 12 — ONLINE ENROLLMENT PORTAL
Requires OEC to develop a centralized portal to allow families to find early care and education
programs, determine eligibility, and apply for available government financial assistance
§ 13 — UPDATES TO SBE’S FIVE-YEAR PLAN PROCESS
Requires the education commissioner to make semiannual presentations on the progress of
SBE’s five-year plan, SBE to use these presentations to inform the plan’s implementation, and
these progress reports to be published online
§ 14 — SUPERINTENDENTS’ ANNUAL INFORMATION REPORT TO
THEIR BOARD OF EDUCATION (BOE)
Requires all superintendents to submit information regarding the district’s contracts, students,
staff, and savings annually to their BOE
§ 15 — POSTING DISCONNECTED YOUTH REPORT ONLINE
Requires any state agency that contributes data to the disconnected youth report to post the
report on their website
§ 16 — ESTABLISHMENT OF REGIONAL EDUCATION
ACCOUNTABILITY REVIE W BOARDS
Establishes regional education accountability review boards for the purpose of supporting
priority school districts
§ 17 — UPDATES TO ANNUAL EXPENDITURE REP ORT PROCESS
BETWEEN SCHOOL BOARD S AND SDE
Requires SDE to publish the penalties for BOEs failing to submit an expenditure report that
aligns with SDE’s criteria and for SDE to provide BOEs with an online application to assist
them in uploading their report’s data 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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§ 18 — UPDATES TO SDE’S CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM PREVENTION
AND INTERVENTION PLAN
Expands on SDE’s chronic absenteeism prevention and intervention plan by incorporating
additional required and permissible components and requiring SDE to review the plan
biannually
§§ 19-21 — UNSPENT FUND ACCOUNT AND EDUC ATIONAL
EXPENDITURES RESERVE FUND UPDATES
Requires local BOEs to create a report on nonlapsing, unspent funds and include similar
information in an existing report; similarly updates requirements related to regional BOE
educational expenditures reserve funds
§ 22 — POSTING CLASSROOM AND STA FFING DATE
Requires school boards, RESCs, and charter schools to post on their websites information on
class size, student-teacher ratios and other staffing, and the nonprofits that provide student
support services to their students; requires SDE to also post this information on its website
§ 23 — CONTACTING LOCAL HOMELESS EDUCATI ON LIAISONS
BEFORE EXPULSION HEARINGS
Requires districts to contact their local homeless education liaisons prior to an expulsion
hearing to determine if the student is homeless
§ 24 — STUDENT SUCCESS COACH PILOT PROGRAM
Requires SDE to administer a three-year student success coach pilot program in select school
districts
§§ 25 & 56 — HVAC GRANTS TO SCHOOL DISTRICT
Repeals the school construction HVAC grant and instead merges it with an existing DAS school
construction grant that provides grants for a broader range of school building projects; merges
most of the existing law’s grant provisions, such as the application and eligibility criteria, into
the existing grant but leaves out some aspects, such requiring applicants to go through the
annual priority list process with legislative approval
§§ 26, 27 & 56 — NETWORK OF SCHOOLS PROGRAM RE PEALED
Repeals the SDE commissioner’s Network of Schools program aimed at improving academic
achievement in low-performing schools
§§ 28-56 — REPEALS ALLIANCE DISTRICT PROGRAM AND
RELATED CHANGES
Repeals the alliance district program, which places certain requirements on the lowest
performing 36 school districts in order for them to receive a portion of their ECS grant
§ 34 — EARLY CHILDHOOD CABINET MEMBERSHI P
Adds a library consortium member to the Early Childhood Cabinet
§ 56 — REPEALERS
Repeals provisions on the SDE commissioner’s network of schools, alliance districts, minority
candidate retention and residency program, and allowing limited reemployment of retired
teachers; makes related technical and conforming changes
SUMMARY
This bill makes numerous changes to the education statutes as 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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described in the section-by-section analysis below.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Various, see below.
§§ 1-11 — UNIVERSAL PRESCHOOL TRUST
Establishes the Universal Preschool Trust, funds it with transfers of unappropriated
surplus, and requires the state treasurer to administer and invest the trust’s funds; creates
the Universal Preschool Trust Board; allows funds in the trust to be used for expenses for
early care and education programs, the eligible categories of which expand in phases based
on the trust’s rate of return
The bill establishes the Universal Preschool Trust, funds it with
transfers of unappropriated surplus, and requires the state treasurer to
administer and invest the money in it. It also creates the Universal
Preschool Trust Board and charges it with administering the fund.
Under the bill, the trust may be used to reimburse boards of
education and child care providers for early care and education
program eligible expenses. It expands the categories of expenses that
may be reimbursed from the trust in phases, generally based on the
fund’s rate of return.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage, except the changes to the tri-share
program (§ 11) and a conforming change (§ 10) are effective July 1, 2025.
Transfers to the Fund (§ 3)
Each fiscal year, after the General Fund accounts have been closed
and the comptroller has determined the amount of any unappropriated
surplus, the bill requires the treasurer to transfer to the Universal
Preschool Trust the unappropriated surplus as follows:
1. For FY 25, up to $300 million and
2. For FY 26 and beyond, the entire amount of the surplus, except
that if the Budget Reserve Fund is below its maximum threshold
(i.e. 18% of net General Fund appropriations for the current fiscal
year), the transfer amount must be reduced and an amount equal
to the reduction must be transferred to the budget reserve fund.
The bill requires the amounts the bill transfers to the trust to be
deducted when determining the amount of unappropriated surplus to 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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be transferred to the Budget Reserve Fund as required by law. The state
constitution requires any unappropriated surplus to be used (1) to fund
a budget reserve fund; (2) to reduce bonded indebtedness; or (3) for any
other purpose authorized by at least three-fifths of the members of each
chamber (Conn. Const., art. III, § 18 (c)).
Fund Expenditures and Reimbursements (§§ 4, 5 & 11)
Starting with FY 26, the bill requires the treasurer to authorize
spending from the trust in phases.
Under the bill, early care and education programs offered by eligible
boards of education and licensed child care providers (i.e. “designated
beneficiaries”) may apply for reimbursement from the trust for eligible
expenses. An “eligible board of education” is a local or regional board
of education that (1) is eligible for a Connecticut Smart Start competitive
grant; (2) offers full-day preschool; and (3) does not charge tuition for
the program, unless the tuition is required as part of a state or federal
grant or subsidy program.
The bill phases in categories of eligible expenses, as shown in the
table below. Generally, the trust must achieve a certain rate of return
before moving to the next phase. The main expense the trust covers is
the “unpaid portion” of tuition for eligible early care and education
programs, the scope of which broadens as the various phases are
implemented. The “unpaid portion” equals the tuition charged for a
child’s enrollment in the program minus (1) state and federal child care
subsidies the program received for the child and (2) an amount that does
not exceed 7% of the annual household income for the child’s family.
Table: Eligible Expenses for Reimbursement From the
Universal Preschool Trust, Phases I to IV
Phase Begins When Eligible Expenses
Phase I FY 27, and operates when
the trust’s rate of return
meets or exceeds the amount
necessary to fund all covered
children as of July 1, 2025
• The unpaid portion of a child’s tuition for a
preschool program offered by a designated
beneficiary through the tri-share program
(see below)
• The costs charged to a family for a
preschool program operated by an eligible
board of education (presumably, this would 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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Phase Begins When Eligible Expenses
cover tuition required under state or federal
law)
Phase II When the two-year annual
rate of return meets or
exceeds the amount
necessary to fund Phase I
plus Phase II expenses
• Phase I expenses
• Costs associated with expanding slots
offered by existing designated beneficiaries
(e.g., transportation costs, capital costs, and
accreditation costs)
Phase III At least one year after Phase
II begins and when the two-
year annual rate of return
meets or exceeds the amount
necessary to fund Phase I
and the first year of phase II
• Phase I & II expenses
• The unpaid portion of a child’s tuition for a
preschool program operated by a
designated beneficiary who is a private child
care services provider
Phase IV At least one year after Phase
III begins and when the two-
year annual rate of return
meets or exceeds the amount
necessary to fund Phases I,
II, and III
• Phase I, II, & III expenses
• The unpaid portion of a child’s tuition for an
infant and toddler program operated by a
designated beneficiary
Tri-Share Program. Under current law, the Office of Early
Childhood (OEC) must administer a tri-share pilot program in New
London county, under which child care costs are shared equally
between employees, employers, and the state. The bill makes this
program statewide and permanent. It also requires that costs for child
care be split as follows:
1. a participating employer must pay at least one-third of an
employee’s full-day child care costs for a program offered by a
designated beneficiary,
2. an employee must be responsible for child care costs in an
amount that does not exceed 7% of the employee’s annual
household income, and
3. the remaining balance (i.e. the “unpaid portion”) must be paid
from the Universal Preschool Trust.
The bill also eliminates a provision in current law that made
employees ineligible for the pilot program if they were receiving other
public assistance for child care. 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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Reimbursement. Under the bill, designated beneficiaries seeking
reimbursement from the trust must submit a claim by the 15th of each
month to the child care resource and referral agency designated by the
OEC commissioner. The child care resource and referral agency must
give the treasurer the claims. After review and approval, the treasurer
must disburse an amount equal to the total sum of claims to the child
care resource and referral agency, who must distribute the funds to
designated beneficiaries in the amount the treasurer approved for the
claim.
Universal Preschool Trust Board (§ 6)
The bill establishes the Universal Preschool Trust Board, places it
within the treasurer’s office for administrative purposes only, and
makes it responsible for administering the trust. It consists of (1) the
OEC commissioner, the treasurer, and the Office of Policy and
Management (OPM) secretary, or their designees and (2) seven
appointed members meeting certain qualifications, as shown in the table
below.
Table: Appointed Board Members
Appointing Authority Qualification
House Speaker Early childhood workforce employee
Senate President Pro Tempore Representative from the Service Employees’
International Union, Local 2001
House Majority Leader Parent or guardian of a child enrolled in an eligible board
of education-provided preschool program
Senate Majority Leader Member of the Connecticut Early Childhood Alliance
House Minority Leader Eligible board of education member
Senate Minority Leader Member of OEC’s parent cabinet
Governor Representative of a corporation with a significant
physical presence in the state whose employees may
benefit from early childhood education and state child
care initiatives
Appointments and Meetings. The bill requires the various
appointing authorities to make appointments to ensure representation
for all geographic regions in the state, to the extent practicable, and to
make initial appointments by September 1, 2025. Members serve at the
pleasure of the appointing authority, but no longer than the appointing 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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authority’s term of office or until the member’s successor is appointed
and qualified, whichever is longer. Vacancies must be filled by the
appointing authority, and any vacancy that occurs other than by a term
expiring must be filled for the balance of the unexpired term.
Under the bill, the treasurer (or his designee) serves as the board’s
chairperson and must schedule and hold the first meeting by October 1,
2025. The board must meet at least quarterly and upon the treasurer’s
request. At the first meeting, and semiannually after that, the treasurer
(or his designee) must give the board an actuarial chart that includes a
review of the total amount of funds in the trust, the health of the trust’s
investments, the trust’s anticipated growth, and any recommended
models for the timing and rate of drawing down from the trust.
Annual Report. Starting by January 1, 2026, the board must annually
report to the Education, Children, and Appropriations committees on
the trust’s actuarial future, its current phase and the anticipated date of
advancing to the next phase (if any), and an assessment of the trust’s
success and efficacy.
Trust Requirements (§§ 2 & 7-10)
Under the bill, the trust is an instrumentality of the state performing
essential governmental functions. It receives and holds all deposits,
contributions, gifts, bequests, endowments, government grants, and
other sources of funds, and the earnings on those funds, until disbursed
as the bill requires.
The bill requires that deposits be made in cash and specifies that
funds in the trust are not the property of the state and cannot be
combined with state funds. The bill also specifies that the trust is not a
state department, institution, or agency, and the state has no claim on
funds in the trust. The trust must continue to exist as long as it has
deposits or obligations and until terminated by law. Unclaimed assets
escheat to the state upon the trust’s termination, and the bill exempts
the trust’s property from the law for determining when property held
by a fiduciary is considered abandoned. 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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Under the bill, any contract entered into by the trust, or any
obligation of the trust, is not a state debt or obligation, and the state has
no obligation on account of the trust. Amounts that must be paid from
the trust are limited to the amount deposited in the trust available for
the payments. The trust’s deposits may be disbursed only in accordance
with the bill.
Treasurer’s Authority and Powers. Under the bill, the state
treasurer must receive, maintain, administer, invest, and disburse the
trust’s money. On behalf of the trust and to carry out its purposes, he
may:
1. receive and invest the trust’s money as described below;
2. enter into contractual agreements for services for the trust (e.g.,
legal, actuarial, administrative, and consulting) and pay for them
with the trusts’ assets;
3. get insurance in connection with the trust’s property, assets,
activities, or deposits;
4. apply for, accept, and spend public or private gifts, grants, or
donations;
5. adopt regulations;
6. sue and be sued;
7. establish funds within the trust; and
8. take other necessary action to carry out the bill’s purposes and
incidental to the treasurer’s duties under the bill.
Memorandums of Understanding. The bill requires the treasurer,
on the trust’s behalf and for its purposes, to enter into memorandums
of understanding (MOUs) with the OEC commissioner and the child
care resource and referral agency to establish information sharing
practices for the purpose of implementing the bill’s provision on trust
expenditures. These MOUs must comply with all applicable state and 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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federal laws.
Investment. The bill requires the state treasurer to (1) invest the
trust’s funds in a reasonable way to achieve its objectives; (2) exercise a
prudent person’s care and discretion; and (3) consider things like rate of
return, risk, maturity, portfolio diversification, liquidity, projected
disbursements and expenditures, and expected deposits and other gifts.
Under the bill, these requirements apply regardless of existing state
laws on the treasurer’s investment authority, including the (1)
requirement that the treasurer’s trust fund investments be reviewed by
the Investment Advisory Council and (2) statutory constraints that limit
the percentage of state funds invested in common stock and investments
in companies doing business in specified countries.
The treasurer need not require that the trust invest in government
bonds or other funds he administers. The bill requires that the trust’s
assets be continuously invested and reinvested, consistent with the
trust’s objectives, until they are disbursed for eligible expenditures or
spent on the trust’s operational expenses.
It also explicitly subjects the treasurer’s trust investments to the same
oversight and requirements that the law establishes for other treasurer-
administered funds, such as the Teachers’ Pension Fund, the State
Employees Retirement Fund, and the Connecticut Municipal
Employees’ Retirement Fund.
Tax Exemption. The bill provides that the trust’s property and
earnings are exempt from all state and local taxes.
§ 12 — ONLINE ENROLLMENT PORTAL
Requires OEC to develop a centralized portal to allow families to find early care and
education programs, determine eligibility, and apply for available government financial
assistance
The bill requires OEC to develop a centralized online enrollment
portal that allows families to find early care and education programs,
determine eligibility, and apply for available government financial
assistance. Specifically, the portal must allow designated beneficiaries 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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to apply for payments from the Universal Preschool Trust and families
to apply for subsidies or financial assistance under:
1. a Head Start or Early Head Start program,
2. Care 4 Kids,
3. early care and education programs receiving financial assistance
under Early Start CT,
4. preschool programs under the Connecticut Smart Start grant
programs,
5. temporary family assistance program,
6. foster care placements or certified relative foster care placements
through the Department of Children and Families (DCF), or
7. any other state or federal child care assistance program.
The portal must also (1) help families identify early care and
education programs in their area, (2) determine a family’s eligibility for
a subsidy and allow families to apply for a subsidy they are eligible for,
and (3) estimate the amount of tuition a family would pay after
deducting subsidies and the amount covered by the Universal Preschool
Trust.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
§ 13 — UPDATES TO SBE’S FIVE-YEAR PLAN PROCESS
Requires the education commissioner to make semiannual presentations on the progress of
SBE’s five-year plan, SBE to use these presentations to inform the plan’s implementation,
and these progress reports to be published online
By law, the State Board of Education (SBE) must prepare a five-year
plan (every five years) with long-term goals and short-term objectives
related to elementary, secondary, vocational, career, and adult
education and specific steps to achieve them. Additionally, SBE is
required to annually report the progress made implementing the plan
to the governor and Education Committee. 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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The bill requires the education commissioner to make semiannual
presentations at regularly scheduled SBE meetings to give updates on
the priorities, actions, and outcomes outlined in the five-year plan.
Additionally, under the bill, SBE must use the information provided in
the presentations in the plan’s implementation and their annual
progress report and make these progress reports available on the State
Department of Education’s (SDE’s) website.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
§ 14 — SUPERINTENDEN TS’ ANNUAL INFORMATION REPORT TO
THEIR BOARD OF EDUCA TION (BOE)
Requires all superintendents to submit information regarding the district’s contracts,
students, staff, and savings annually to their BOE
Annually, between June 1 and September 29, the bill requires each
school district’s superintendent to provide the following information at
a regularly scheduled board of education (BOE) meeting:
1. the number and names of all community-based organizations in
which the district is in a formal MOU, memorandum of
agreement, or contract that pertains to providing student support
services (by school and type of support service);
2. the number of students in credit and non-credit internships and
workforce development programs (by type and duration);
3. classroom sizes and student-teacher ratios during the previous
school year (by school and subject);
4. certified and noncertified staff turnover, other than same-district
transfers (by school and subject); and
5. any savings earned through vacancies in approved budgeted
positions for the academic year.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
§ 15 — POSTING DISCONNECTED YOUTH REPORT ONLINE
Requires any state agency that contributes data to the disconnected youth report to post
the report on their website 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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The bill requires any state agency that contributes data for the
Connecticut Preschool through Twenty and Workforce Information
Network’s (P20 WIN) disconnected youth report to post the report on
their website.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage
Background — Disconnected Youth Report
By law, the P20 WIN executive board is required to annually report
on disconnected youth using the data model established through the
data-sharing agreement 0043 regarding Research on Disengaged and
Disconnected Youth in Connecticut (i.e. a 2023 agreement between
various state agencies (including SDE, DCF, the Department of Labor,
and Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services), a nonprofit,
and a private consulting firm to share certain data from P20 WIN).
A “disconnected youth” is an individual age 14-26 who is (1) an at-
risk student (in danger of not graduating due to certain factors) or (2)
not enrolled in high school and (a) does not have a high school diploma
or its equivalent; (b) has a diploma or equivalent but is unemployed and
not enrolled in an adult education program, higher education
institution, or a workforce training or certification program, including
an apprenticeship program, or otherwise pursuing postsecondary
education; or (c) is incarcerated.
§ 16 — ESTABLISHMENT OF REGIONAL EDUCATI ON
ACCOUNTABILITY REVIE W BOARDS
Establishes regional education accountability review boards for the purpose of supporting
priority school districts
The bill establishes a regional education accountability review board
for each planning region within the state (see BACKGROUND ). Each
board must (1) provide technical, financial, and other assistance, and
related accountability, to their priority school districts (see
BACKGROUND ); (2) develop budgeting and expenditure guidelines
for their priority school districts; and (3) analyze these districts’
educational spending. The boards are within SDE for administrative
purposes only. 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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Each regional education accountability review board must be chaired
by the education commissioner and state treasurer or their designees.
Each board must also include the following members:
1. a professional in children’s health and wellbeing, the chief
elected official of a community within the board’s planning
region, and a third individual (appointed by the Governor);
2. a second professional in children’s health and wellbeing
(appointed by the Senate minority leader);
3. one individual who is an experienced member of an organization
that is in a collective bargaining agreement with a school district
within the planning region, chosen from a list recommended by
specified unions (appointed by the Senate president pro
tempore);
4. one active superintendent (appointed by the House speaker); and
5. one current or former education law attorney (appointed by the
House minority leader).
Under the bill, each regional education accountability review board
must submit to SBE an annual expenditure report for each priority
district located in their planning region. SDE must make the reports
available on the department’s website.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
Background — Planning Regions
Planning regions are geographic areas of Connecticut that consist of
unified municipalities for the purpose of collaborating on common
interests. By law, OPM designates the boundaries of planning regions.
Currently, Connecticut is composed of nine planning regions.
Background — Priority School Districts
Priority school districts are districts (1) whose students receive low
standardized test scores, (2) that have high levels of poverty, or (3) in
the eight towns with the largest population in the state (CGS § 10- 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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266p(a)). There are 16 priority districts in the 2024-25 school year.
§ 17 — UPDATES TO ANNUAL EXPENDITURE REP ORT PROCESS
BETWEEN SCHOOL BOARD S AND SDE
Requires SDE to publish the penalties for BOEs failing to submit an expenditure report
that aligns with SDE’s criteria and for SDE to provide BOEs with an online application
to assist them in uploading their report’s data
By law, BOEs must have their school superintendents annually report
returns of the school district’s receipts, expenditures, and statistics to
SDE, who must then post on its website this data by education program
type, expense function, expense object, and funding source.
Additionally, the department must publish an online guide defining
each expenditure and funding source category. The bill requires this
publication to also include the corrective actions or penalties SDE can
impose on a BOE if the data in their reports fails to align with these
definitions.
Furthermore, in existing law, SDE must publish the data from the
reports in a format allowing for financial comparisons between districts
and schools. The bill requires that SDE provide each BOE an application
program interface (through SDE’s education data portal or an
alternative method) to assist the board in posting their report’s data on
SDE’s website.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
§ 18 — UPDATES TO SDE’S CH RONIC ABSENTEEISM
PREVENTION AND INTER VENTION PLAN
Expands on SDE’s chronic absenteeism prevention and intervention plan by
incorporating additional required and permissible components and requiring SDE to
review the plan biannually
By law, SDE was required to develop, in consultation with the
Interagency Council for Ending the Achievement Gap, a chronic
absenteeism prevention and intervention plan to be used by BOEs.
The bill requires SDE to review, and revise as needed, the plan
biannually. When making revisions, SDE must incorporate the findings
from the disconnected youth report (see Background — Disconnected
Youth Report in § 15 of this analysis). The bill also specifically requires 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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the plan to include the truancy policies and procedures that school
boards must adopt by law (e.g., requiring a meeting with parents or
guardians after a student’s fourth unexcused absence in a month or 10th
in a school year).
In existing law, the plan must include, among other things, a way to
collect and analyze data on chronic absenteeism that allows for the data
to be separated into various subgroups, including race, gender, free or
reduced lunch eligibility, disability status, and primary language other
than English. The bill adds housing status as an additional category.
Additionally, it requires that the plan include using an early indication
tool to identify students who are at risk for becoming chronically absent
or disconnected from school, such as students who may not be able to
graduate, have a history of behavioral or disciplinary issues, or are
homeless. This tool can be provided by SDE or a third party.
By law, SDE may include a research-based and data-driven
mentorship model to address chronic absenteeism in their plan. These
mentors can be students, teachers, administrators, athletic coaches,
school resource officers, and community partners. The bill allows for
SDE to also use a home visiting model. Under the bill, both home
visiting and mentorship models are subject to the same list of mentors,
and the bill adds family navigators and student success coaches to this
list.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
§§ 19-21 — UNSPENT FUND ACCOUNT AND EDUC ATIONAL
EXPENDITURES RESERVE FUND UPDATES
Requires local BOEs to create a report on nonlapsing, unspent funds and include similar
information in an existing report; similarly updates requirements related to regional BOE
educational expenditures reserve funds
Addition to an Existing Cost Report
By law, local BOEs are allowed to deposit unspent education funds
into a nonlapsing account. The deposit may be up to 2% of the previous
fiscal year’s budgeted appropriation for education, and account
expenditures must be only for educational purposes. 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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Under existing law, each BOE must publish an annual report with a
summary showing the (1) total cost of maintaining the schools, (2)
amount received from the state and other sources for this purpose, and
(3) net cost to the municipality of the school budget. The bill adds that
the report must also include the balance of any nonlapsing, unspent
funds account.
New Report on Nonlapsing, Unspent Funds
Beginning for FY 26, the bill requires each local BOE to create an
annual report on their nonlapsing, unspent fund account. This report
must include the following information:
1. the total balance of the account,
2. the amount deposited into the account in a fiscal year, and
3. an accounting of the expenditures made from the account.
The report must be submitted to SDE and the exclusive bargaining
representative for certified employees.
Updating Exclusive Bargaining Representatives on Nonlapsing,
Unspent Funds
Under the bill, starting for FY 26, each local BOE must annually notify
the exclusive bargaining representative for certified employees of the:
1. establishment of a nonlapsing, unspent funds account; or
2. board’s intended uses for any funds in the account during the
next fiscal year.
This notification must be made no later than 30 days from the
adoption of the board’s budget.
Requirements Regarding Educational Expenditures Reserve Fund
By law, a regional BOE, by a majority vote of its members, can create
an educational expenditures reserve fund (limited to 2% of the district’s
budget, to be used for educational purposes). These boards must
annually report to member towns on the condition of the fund. 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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Under the bill, beginning FY 26, each board must annually:
1. make available and annually update information regarding the
fund, including the fund’s total balance, the amount deposited
into the fund in a fiscal year, and an accounting of the
expenditures made from it; and
2. notify the exclusive bargaining representative for certified
employees of the educational expenditure reserve ’s
establishment or the board’s intended uses for the funds during
the next fiscal year (this notification must be made no later than
30 days from the adoption of the board’s budget).
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
§ 22 — POSTING CLASSROOM AND STAFFING DA TE
Requires school boards, RESCs, and charter schools to post on their websites information
on class size, student-teacher ratios and other staffing, and the nonprofits that provide
student support services to their students; requires SDE to also post this information on
its website
By law, school boards, regional education service centers (RESC), and
state charter school governing authorities (i.e. governing boards) must
annually post on their websites aggregate spending on items for each
school such as salaries, benefits, instructional supplies and equipment,
and special education tuition, among other things. The bill requires the
same entities, beginning with FY 26, to quarterly post information on
their websites about:
1. actual class size and student-teacher ratios, disaggregated by
school;
2. the number of full-time equivalent staff positions, disaggregated
by SDE categories;
3. the number of staffing vacancies, and any accrued savings from
the vacancies during the current fiscal year; and
4. the nonprofit organizations with which they have an agreement
or contract to provide support services, including to youth at risk 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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of becoming disconnected from school (leaving school) and the
scope of services they provide.
For school boards and charter school governing authorities, they
must also include any agreements they have with RESCs and the scope
of services the RESC provides, including for at-risk youth.
School boards and RESCs must submit this information to the
applicable town legislative body or board of selectmen, if the legislative
body is a town meeting, and the teachers’ union. Charter school
governing authorities are only required to submit it to the teachers’
union.
By January 1, 2027, and annually thereafter, SDE must make the
required information available on its website.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
§ 23 — CONTACTING LOCAL HOMELESS EDUCATI ON LIAISONS
BEFORE EXPULSION HEARINGS
Requires districts to contact their local homeless education liaisons prior to an expulsion
hearing to determine if the student is homeless
Under the bill, before a school expulsion hearing, a school
administrator, counselor, or social worker must contact the local
homeless education liaison designated by the local or regional BOE to
determine if the student is homeless (see Background). If the student is
found to be homeless, the entity conducting the hearing (the BOE or the
impartial hearing board) must consider the impact of homelessness on
the student’s behavior, and the student cannot be expelled without a
plan to alleviate this impact.
The bill also requires the BOE to provide a meeting with the local
homeless education liaison for any child who is determined to be
homeless and is expelled two times.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
Background — School Expulsion Hearings
By law, a school board must hold a hearing before expelling a 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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student, except in an emergency (i.e. the student’s continued presence
would be so disruptive or dangerous as to allow the student’s removal
before the hearing). In the latter instance, the expulsion hearing must
take place as soon as possible after the student’s removal.
Background — Homeless Youth and Homeless Education
Liaisons
Federal law defines “homeless children and youths” as individuals
who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, and
includes those sharing the housing of others due to loss of housing,
economic hardship, or a similar reason (42 U.S.C. § 11434a).
The federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act requires
every school district in the country to designate a homeless liaison, who
is a local educational agency staff person. This liaison is responsible for
identifying and supporting homeless students across the district (42
U.S.C. § 11431 et seq.).
§ 24 — STUDENT SUCCESS COACH PILOT PROGR AM
Requires SDE to administer a three-year student success coach pilot program in select
school districts
The bill requires SDE to administer a student success coach pilot
program in the Bridgeport, Hartford, New Britain, New Haven, New
London, Norwich, Waterbury, and Windham school districts for FYs 26
through 28. The program must utilize evidence-based strategies shown
to effectively support students with attendance, behavioral, or credit
attainment challenges and other risk factors making them more likely to
become disconnected from school and misuse drugs (including
opioids).
Under the bill, a participating local BOE can apply for a grant of up
to $2,000,000 from SDE, and SDE must award grants in line with the law
on the Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee. To be eligible for a
grant, the BOE must:
1. utilize an early indicator tool from SDE to identify students with
the greatest need for a student success coach, and 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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2. be evaluated by SDE’s Center for Connecticut Education
Research Collaboration, or a third party selected by SDE.
Under the bill, by February 15, 2029, SDE must:
1. evaluate the program’s implementation and effectiveness, and
2. report findings and recommendations to SBE, the Opioid
Settlement Advisory Committee, the Education Committee, and
the Committee on Children.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
§§ 25 & 56 — HVAC GRANTS TO SCHOOL DISTR ICT
Repeals the school construction HVAC grant and instead merges it with an existing DAS
school construction grant that provides grants for a broader range of school building
projects; merges most of the existing law’s grant provisions, such as the application and
eligibility criteria, into the existing grant but leaves out some aspects, such requiring
applicants to go through the annual priority list process with legislative approval
The bill repeals the existing school construction heating, ventilation,
and air conditioning systems (HVAC) grant and instead merges it with
an existing school construction grant law that provides grants for a
broader range of school building projects (such as roof replacements
and addressing building code violations). The bill subjects the new
HVAC grants to the same application and eligibility criteria as for
existing non-priority school building projects (see Inspection and
Maintenance Requirements).
Under the bill, current law’s provisions are generally added to the
existing Department of Administrative Services (DAS) school
construction grant that authorizes the commissioner to award grants
without going through the annual priority list process, which the
legislature approves annually in a bill (these projects are often referred
to as the “non-priority list projects”). The priority list includes major
projects such as building new schools or complete renovations of
existing schools.
Under current law, the DAS commissioner may approve grants to
reimburse school districts for project costs to install, replace, or upgrade 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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HVAC systems or related improvements. Under the bill, the
commissioner may approve grants to upgrade HVAC systems or make
other improvements to indoor air quality in school buildings. The bill
language does not include installing or replacing systems.
While the statutes for each of these grants do not include a dollar
limit, the non-priority list projects tend to be smaller than the priority
list projects, ranging from $100,000 to $5 million. Priority list projects
commonly range from $1 million to, in some cases, $200 million.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
Inspection and Maintenance Requirements
The bill maintains the following current law requirements:
1. prohibiting awarding grants for HVAC or indoor air quality
improvements to recipients unless they have certified
compliance with the uniform inspection and evaluation of their
school buildings’ HVAC systems as required by law (CGS § 10-
220(d)),
2. deeming the following expenses as ineligible for reimbursement:
(a) routine maintenance and cleaning of the HVAC system and
(b) work performed at or on a public school administrative or
service facility that is not located or housed within a public school
building, and
3. requiring grant recipients to (a) be responsible for the routine
maintenance and cleaning of the HVAC system and (b) provide
training to school personnel and maintenance staff concerning
the system’s proper use and maintenance.
Repealed HVAC Grant Provisions
The bill repeals the following provisions:
1. grant eligibility for charter schools;
2. specific grant eligibility criteria including (a) the age and
condition of the current HVAC system or equipment being 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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replaced or upgraded in the school, (b) current air quality issues
at the school, (c) the age and condition of the overall school
building, (d) the school district’s master plan, (e) the availability
of maintenance records, (f) the school’s routine HVAC
maintenance contract or plan, and (g) the applicant’s ability to
finance the remaining costs;
3. requiring DAS to reconsider grant applications it has denied
through the end of FY 26 and provide technical assistance to the
denied school board to help the board gain approval of the grant;
4. requiring DAS, if there is not enough grant funding, to prioritize
schools with the greatest need based on the eligibility criteria;
and
5. requiring an HVAC project to be completed by the end of the next
calendar year after the grant was awarded unless extended by
DAS for good cause.
§§ 26, 27 & 56 — NETWORK OF SCHOOLS PROG RAM REPEALED
Repeals the SDE commissioner’s Network of Schools program aimed at improving
academic achievement in low-performing schools
The bill repeals the education commissioner’s Network of Schools
program through which she selects up to 25 low-achieving schools each
school year that receive intensified SBE supervision and direction (CGS
§ 10-223h).
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
Currently, the program sets steps the commissioner, school district
turnaround committees, and local and regional boards of education
must take to improve academic achievement. Each school’s turnaround
committee must create and implement a turnaround plan, based on a
turnaround model it chooses. The law requires the commissioner to give
participating schools funding and technical and operational support.
Schools remain in the network for three years with an option for an
additional two. 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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The bill does not specify what happens to the schools currently
participating in the program that have not completed their designated
time.
The bill also repeals a related law that addresses contracts between
school boards and non-profit educational management organizations
selected as part of a participating school’s turnaround plan to manage
the school (CGS § 10-223i).
Among other things, these contracts must require the management
organizations to annually report to the education commissioner on (1)
the educational progress of the school’s students; (2) its financial
relationship with the school, including a certified audit statement of all
revenues from public and private sources and expenditures; and (3) the
time their employees and consultants devoted to the school.
The bill also makes related technical and conforming changes to
various statutes.
§§ 28-56 — REPEALS ALLIANCE DISTRICT PRO GRAM AND
RELATED CHANGES
Repeals the alliance district program, which places certain requirements on the lowest
performing 36 school districts in order for them to receive a portion of their ECS grant
The bill repeals the alliance district program, and in doing so (1)
updates terminology in several statutes, replacing “alliance districts”
with “priority school districts,” (PSD) ”literary districts,” or “eligible
communities,” as described below; (2) narrows eligibility for certain
programs from alliance districts to PSDs; (3) expands eligibility for
certain education programs to all school districts instead of only alliance
districts; and (4) expands eligibility for several programs to primary
school districts instead of education reform districts as under current
law.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
Alliance District Program Repeal
The bill repeals the alliance district program, which requires each of
the state’s 36 lowest performing school districts (as measured by the 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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accountability index; see Background — Accountability Index Scores) to
submit an improvement plan to SDE for approval before the department
releases the district’s alliance funding (i.e. a portion of the annual
education cost sharing (ECS) grant that these districts receive). The plan
must detail how a district will use its alliance funding to improve
student achievement. In addition to the plan, the law permits the
alliance district funding to be spent according to SDE’s minority
candidate certification, retention, or residency year program (see below)
and with any SBE guidelines (CGS § 10-262u).
Current law specifies improvement plan components, such as (1) a
tiered intervention system for the district’s schools based on their needs;
(2) ways to strengthen reading programs to ensure reading mastery in
grades K-3; (3) additional learning time, including extended school day
or year programs run by school personnel or external partners; and (4)
a talent strategy that includes teacher and school leader recruitment and
assignment and career ladder policies that draw on district-approved
guidelines for a teacher evaluation.
The program also includes SDE interventions and oversight to help
districts carry out their plans.
The bill also makes related minor, technical and conforming changes
to various statutes (§§ 28, 35, 39, 42, 48, 54 & 56).
Terminology Changes
The bill changes terminology in various education statutes by
replacing the term “alliance district” with the following:
1. PSDs, which are districts that meet certain town population,
student performance, and poverty measures and receive state
grants for certain programs (e.g., reading, afterschool, and
dropout prevention programs);
2. “literacy districts,” which are districts the education
commissioner identified as needing literacy assistance based on
their students’ performance on the state reading mastery exam;
and 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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3. “eligible communities,” which are one of the 50 towns in the state
with the lowest equalized net grand list.
Additionally, the bill substitutes the term “education reform district”
(i.e. the lowest scoring 10 districts within the state’s 36 alliance districts)
with PSD.
Currently, there are 36 alliance districts and 16 PSDs. By substituting
alliance districts with PSDs the bill makes 20 districts no longer eligible
for certain programs or subject to alliance district statutory provisions,
as described below.
ECS Grant (§§ 40, 41 & 43). The bill applies to PSDs, instead of
alliance districts, the following ECS grant provisions:
1. a “hold harmless” provision that guarantees PSDs receive a grant
amount that is at least as much as they received in the previous
fiscal year;
2. the “base aid ratio” used to calculate ECS grants that sets a
minimum floor of 10% for a PSD’s wealth factor, instead of 1%
for non-PSDs (districts with higher ratios receive higher per
student grant amounts); and
3. a minimum budget requirement (MBR) provision that generally
prohibits PSDs from lowering their MBR for education from one
year to the next.
By law, the state ECS grant is calculated annually based on the
number and demographics of students enrolled in a district (those
eligible for free and reduced meals and English language learners are
weighted more in the grant calculation) and the town’s property wealth
(towns with higher property wealth receive less per student than those
with less property wealth).
Additional Grant Programs for PSDs (§§ 37, 38, 44, 45, 49 & 52).
The bill replaces alliance districts with PSDs in the following six grant
programs: 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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1. CT Grown for CT Kids Grant Program, which helps education
boards develop farm-to-school program to increase availability
of local foods in child nutrition programs (CGS § 10-215l);
2. Local Food for Schools Incentive Program, which reimburses
education boards for purchasing locally- and regionally-sourced
food to use in its school meal program (CGS § 10-215m);
3. School Building Improvements Grant Program, which helps
districts pay for general improvements to school buildings
(generally for projects that are smaller than those that are part of
the school construction annual priority lists process) (CGS § 10-
265h);
4. Municipal Aid for New Educators Grant Program, which gives
grants to education boards to hire certain students enrolled in
teacher preparation programs (CGS § 10-265o);
5. Preparation for Academic Transition to Higher Education
(PATH) Grant Program, which gives grants to nonprofit
organizations that assist high school students with the college
application and financial aid process (CGS § 10a-11k); and
6. state grants in lieu of taxes to certain properties, for purposes of
determining which towns will be considered a Tier I municipality
(i.e. those with an equalized net grand list per capita of under
$100,000) (CGS § 12-18b(d)).
Literacy Districts (§§ 31-33). The bill applies the following
programs to literacy districts instead of alliance districts, as under
current law: (1) state grants for new curricula and related training,
textbooks, and materials; (2) the intensive reading instruction program
for students in grades kindergarten to grade three; and (3) the reading
readiness program.
Eligible Communities (§ 29). The bill applies the following
programs to eligible communities instead of alliance districts, as under
current law: (1) the Housing Environmental Revolving Loan and Grant 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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Program and (2) the pilot program for energy efficiency projects for
multifamily residences located in environmental justice communities or
eligible communities.
Expanding Certain Programs to All School Districts (§§ 36, 51, 52
& 55)
The bill expands eligibility for several programs currently available
only to alliance districts by instead making them available to any school
district. These programs include the following:
1. the aspiring educator diversity scholarship program, which gives
annual scholarships to diverse students who graduated from a
public high school in an alliance district and are enrolled in a
teacher preparation program at a four-year higher education
institution (CGS § 10-156ii);
2. the alliance districts educator and counselor loan subsidy
program, which subsidizes interest rates on loans to teachers,
paraeducators and school counselors employed in alliance
districts (CGS §§ 10a-247 &-247a); and
3. probate court truancy clinics in alliance districts (CGS § 45a-8c).
Expanding Certain Programs for Educational Reform Districts (§§
30, 46, 47 & 53)
The bill also applies several programs to PSDs, instead of educational
reform districts, as under current law. In doing so, it expands access to
these programs by making 16 districts, instead of 10, eligible.
Specifically, these programs include the following:
1. mortgage assistance for certain teachers (CGS § 8-265pp),
2. the wraparound services grant program (CGS § 10-265p),
3. the educational reform district science grant program (CGS § 10-
265q), and
4. the Neighborhood Assistance Act tax credit (GS § 12-635). 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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Background — Accountability Index Scores
The “accountability index” for a school district or an individual
school is the score resulting from multiple weighted measures that (1)
include the mastery test scores (i.e. performance index) and, if
appropriate, high school graduation rates, and (2) may include
academic growth over time, attendance and chronic absenteeism,
postsecondary education and career readiness, enrollment in and
graduation from institutions of higher education and postsecondary
education programs, civics and arts education, and physical fitness
(CGS § 10-223e(a)).
§ 34 — EARLY CHILDHOOD CABINET MEMBERSHI P
Adds a library consortium member to the Early Childhood Cabinet
The bill increases the Early Childhood Cabinet’s membership, from
31 to 32, by adding the executive director of the Connecticut Library
Consortium or a cooperating library service unit, or his or her designee.
The bill does not indicate how it will be decided whether the new board
member is the director of the library consortium or of a library service
unit.
The bill also makes conforming changes by substituting the term
“alliance district” with “primary school district” for two existing cabinet
members (one school board member and one parent of a student in an
educational reform district) to reflect the bills’ repeal of the alliance
district program (see §§ 28-56 above).
By law, the Early Childhood Cabinet (1) advises OEC, (2) develops
an annual action plan that assigns state agencies certain tasks specified
in the federal Head Start Act, and (3) submits an annual statewide
strategic report that addresses agencies’ progress in meeting the action
plan’s requirements.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
Background — Related Bills
sSB 6, § 8 (File 199), favorably reported by the Committee on
Children, adds the Connecticut Library Consortium’s executive director 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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to the Early Childhood Cabinet’s membership.
HB 5003, §§ 1 & 2 (File 198), favorably reported by the Committee on
Children, transfers unappropriated surplus funds into a fund dedicated
to early childhood care and education programs, and the treasurer
manages the fund and invests its assets.
SB 1458, favorably reported by the Education Committee, repeals the
Network of Schools program and revamps the Alliance District program
by reducing, from 36 to 15, the number of districts and renames them
opportunity districts.
HB 6922 (File 311), favorably reported by the Education Committee,
repeals the existing school construction HVAC grant and merges it with
an existing school construction grant law that gives grants for a broader
range of school building projects.
§ 56 — REPEALERS
Repeals provisions on the SDE commissioner’s network of schools, alliance districts,
minority candidate retention and residency program, and allowing limited reemployment
of retired teachers; makes related technical and conforming changes
In addition to repealing provisions on the (1) DAS HVAC system
grant program for school boards (see § 25 above); (2) SDE
commissioner’s Network of Schools program (see §§ 26, 27 & 56 above);
and (3) alliance district program (see §§ 28-56 above), the bill
additionally repeals the following provisions and makes related
technical and conforming changes:
1. requiring SDE to administer the Minority Candidate Certification
Retention or Residency Year Program (“Retention or Residency
Program”) (CGS § 10-156gg), and
2. allowing limited reemployment of retired teachers (CGS § 10-
183v).
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2025
Teacher Candidate Retention or Residency Program
Current law requires SDE to administer the Retention or Residency 2025SB-00001-R000637-BA.DOCX
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program in coordination with a RESC or a private, nonprofit
certification program. It also requires each school district designated as
an alliance district to partner with a residency program operator to
enroll minority candidates and place them in the district for their 10-
month teacher candidate residency. SDE must (1) withhold from each
alliance district 10% of any increase in alliance aid and (2) use the funds
for grant payments to cover program-related costs (CGS § 10-156gg).
Reemployment of Retired Teachers
Under current law, retired teachers are allowed to be reemployed for
certain periods of time under specified conditions and still receive their
pension benefit (they do not contribute to their pension during this
time). Generally, they are reemployed (1) under the “45% rule” (earning
up to 45% of the position’s maximum salary and returning any payment
received over that amount) or (2) in a shortage area or at a PSD for up
to two years with no salary limit. (An existing third option for those who
retired after at least 34 years of teaching and are now reemployed with
an alliance district expired in 2024 (CGS § 10-183v).)
COMMITTEE ACTION
Education Committee
Joint Favorable
Yea 30 Nay 15 (03/24/2025)