2002 Senate Bill 1107 ↩

Senate Roll Call 406: Passed

The House-Senate conference committee report for the FY 2002-2003 K-12 school aid budget, with $12.691 million in gross spending. The budget includes $494 million from a proposed change to July for the collection date for all of the six-mill state school tax, and approximately $1 billion in new and ongoing federal grants which would previously have been contained in the Department of Education budget. The budget increases the minimum per-pupil foundation grant from $6,500 to $6,700, and restores some previously programmed spending on “categorical” line items such as school “readiness” programs, Intermediate School District funding, and adult education. It also includes $2.4 million current year and $3.7 million next year for school-based health clinics. The budget eliminates previously authorized funding of $45 million for a “Parental Involvement in Education” (PIE) program, in which social workers and other government employees attempt to educate new parents about the importance of proper parenting techniques, and another $45 million for a summer remedial reading program for certain grammar school students. Finally, the budget cuts extra funds previously granted to certain Upper Peninsula districts with declining enrollment, but has extra funds for "Michigan Virtual University," which could be used for distance-learning classes at these schools.