Relates to school aid for transportation of children attending a universal pre-kindergarten program; repealer

Showing the cosponsors who are on Agora, A to Z. The official record may list more.

• Democratic1

Shown in neutral colors by design; Agora is non-partisan.

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Patricia Fahy says this is needed

The state currently allows school districts to offer pupil transporta- tion for universal pre-kindergarten programs, but the legislation that authorized this simultaneously prohibited transportation aid reimburse- ment for these services. While some have suggested that this can be achieved at no cost to the school district by route sharing, most programs end at noon whereas the regular school bus routes do not resume until the end of the "normal" school day. Current law has the uninten- tional consequence of creating an unfunded mandate on school districts, who must pay for additional routes without reimbursement by the state. It also discourages the expansion of prekindergarten by creating a major barrier - namely, transportation expenses for school districts. This bill would ensure that universal pre-kindergarten transportation can be reimbursed like any other pupil transportation service, allowing for the expansion of safe travel to and from beneficial educational programs for the youth of our state.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.