This week Senate Democrats brought forward two education bills that not only place unfunded mandates on schools, but also fail to address safe schools aid, early literacy, and the special education cross subsidy. 

“Senate Republicans put forward a number of amendments that focus on putting students first, but what the Democrats have left us with is a one-size-fits-all bill that places overly burdensome mandates on Minnesota schools,” said Senator Eric Pratt (R-Prior Lake). “Republicans offered a way to meet the education needs of schools, yet our amendments were struck down. This bill falls short of what we should be giving our local communities, and it will not move the dial any closer to closing the achievement gap.”

As an alternative, Senate Republicans introduced a “Students First” education plan that presents a better alternative to a set of Democrat-led mandate-heavy education bills. The Students First plan incorporates five key points that aim to directly assist students and address education shortfalls: 

• A 5% increase on the formula each year, with no new mandates tied to the formula 
• $1 billion to fund the special education cross-subsidy, which equates to funding the cross-subsidy at 65% 
• $100 million to fund literacy programs that get Minnesota students back on track  
• $200 million to fund “Safe Schools” initiatives to ensure every child feels safe while learning  
• $100 million to provide additional property tax relief through equalization  

This plan sets itself apart from the Democrats’ plan by offering an alternative that prioritizes students, literacy, and funding that directly benefits learning in the classroom. While the Democrats’ plan provides a 4% increase the first year and a 5% increase in the second year on the formula, most is tied to funding new mandates, less than half of the special education cross-subsidy, only $41 million for literacy and nothing for school safety. After promising to “fully fund” education during the election, school districts have said they will need to make budget cuts due to the unfunded mandates if the Democrats’ plan passes.

In August 2022, the Department of Education released assessment results that showed a steady decrease in students meeting standards in reading, math, and science. Between 2018 and 2022, Minnesota went from 60% of students being proficient in reading to only 51%. A similar trend follows for science, decreasing from 52% to 41%, and math, also decreasing from 57% to 44%. Additionally, in 19 schools across the state, not a single student was proficient in math.