GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA SESSION 2025 H 1 HOUSE BILL 785 Short Title: School Funding Flexibility Study. (Public) Sponsors: Representatives Lofton and Willis (Primary Sponsors). For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site. Referred to: Appropriations, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House April 7, 2025 *H785 -v-1* A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1 AN ACT TO STUDY BUDGET FLEXIBILITY FOR LOCAL BOARDS OF EDUCA TION. 2 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 3 SECTION 1. The Department of Public Instruction shall study methods of 4 implementing budget flexibility guidelines for local school administrative units. Flexibilities 5 include methods of combining allotments, allowing transfers between allotments, or other 6 methods the Department deems viable. The Department shall submit a report to the Joint 7 Legislative Education Oversight Committee and the Fiscal Research Division on or before April 8 1, 2026. The report shall identify areas where a greater amount of flexibility would enable local 9 boards of education to meet the needs of students, teachers, administrators, and other school 10 employees, along with any legislative recommendations. 11 SECTION 2. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of 12 Public Instruction the sum of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 13 2025-2026 fiscal year to be used to conduct the study required by this act. 14 SECTION 3. This act becomes effective July 1, 2025. 15