The Legislature’s own research department said that in the current fiscal year, schools are being shorted $173 million from covering the 92% of statewide excess costs as the law calls for. SPED services are mandatory, and the federal government and Kansas legislature need to fund it. Underfunding SPED hurts all students.
-El Dorado school district spent $2.2 million last year on special education; they had to transfer $770,000 to cover the state shortfall for special education.
-Derby school district spent $1million last year on special education; they had to transfer $370,000 to cover the state shortfall for special education.
-Haysville school district spent $14 million last year on special education; they had to transfer $6.5 million to cover the state shortfall for special education.