Beshear proposes ‘record’ $2 billion in investments in pre-K to 12th grade education

Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday unveiled “record funding” of an additional $2 billion in pre-K to 12th grade education as part of his upcoming budget proposal.

Beshear’s proposed budget would fully fund universal pre-K for all 4-year-olds with $172 million in each year of the biennium and fund full day kindergarten.

“It is more than affordable... a something we must do,” Beshear said of the pre-school proposal.

Republican lawmakers did not immediately comment Monday afternoon.

Beshear is also proposing a 16.9 percent increase in SEEK funding, the dollars provided to K-12 schools for everything from transportation to support for special needs students.

There is a 12. 5 percent increase in the SEEK based per pupil funding formula for elementary and secondary schools.

The budget proposal fully funds school district costs for student transportation. That is $175 million annually, an 81 percent increase over the last budget.

“We are not burdening our schools with an unfunded mandate,” Beshear said.

Kentucky needs to make sure it is paying the people educating children what they are worth, Beshear said.

The proposal includes a minimum 5 percent salary increase for all school personnel, in additional to salary schedule increases for certified educators. He said its the first identified pay increase in a budget since 2006 to 2008 and there will be no health insurance premium increases for school employees, Beshear said. He said Kentucky ranks 42nd nationally in starting salaries for teachers.

He is providing $26. 3 million each year for a student loan forgiveness program that provides a maximum of $3,000 a year annually to help a teacher pay off student loans. Educators can stay in the program for five years if they are teaching in Kentucky. His proposal fully funds teacher’s pensions and medical benefits, all measures to keep them in the classrooms.

Beshear’s proposal provides $22.9 million each year to restore professional development as well as provide funding for textbooks and instructional resources.

With the proposed funding, Kentucky teachers would not have to dip into their own pocket to provide resources for their classrooms, he said.

Beshear provided an additional $6 million each year in funding for the state’s 874 family resource and youth service centers for 1,200 schools, which Beshear said provides items such as coats for students. He said their funding has not been increased for years.

Beshear’s proposal represents the largest single investment in pre-K to 12th grade education since the passage of the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990. A statement from the Kentucky Education Association supporting the investment said his proposal “won’t raise one dollar in additional taxes.”

Kentucky Education Commissioner Jason Glass said “in what has been – and continues to be – a very tough couple of years for our schools, we are so pleased to see these proposed historic investments in public education.”

“The priorities for the Kentucky Board of Education and the Kentucky Department of Education this budget cycle include funding all-day kindergarten, funding school transportation costs and restoring funding for professional development for our public school teachers. All of these are supported by this budget proposal, along with other investments that will contribute to the quality of education for Kentucky’s public school students,” Glass said.

“Governor, our schools desperately needed another shot of hope that things were going to get better and this budget proposal delivers just that,” Glass said.

Kentucky House Republicans last Friday filed a two-year state budget bill that includes pay raises for state employees, enough state funding to cover the cost of full-day kindergarten for school districts and the more than $4.2 billion required for pension contributions to the funds for state workers and school teachers.

The House GOP majority filed House Bill 1 in advance of Beshear’s formal budget address on Thursday, which his office said broke with longstanding tradition.

“Drafting and filing an executive branch budget without the knowledge or input from the executive branch itself is unprecedented, it’s unprovoked, its unprofessional, unwise and perhaps even unlawful,” Beshear said Monday.

Beshear said the differences between his proposal and that of House Republicans include $685 million more in SEEK, universal preschool, school staff salary increases, more transportation costs, social and emotional learning help, help for low-performing schools and early learning initiatives and local vocational centers. Beshear said his budget includes institution’s funding increases, Better Kentucky Promise Scholarships, and post-secondary new construction projects.

Beshear said Kentucky’s economy is booming with world class companies coming to the state and that success begins with education.

Beshear said his proposal provides $6.2 million each year to address social and emotional learning needs of student with training institutes for educators. There are two new grant programs for students impacted by violence and substance abuse, child abuse and parental incarceration.

He included $97.4 million to support the renovation of 11 career and technical centers.

Beshear’s proposal provides $14.4 million each year for 48 low-performing schools that need a turnaround.

He is restoring “a program that should have never been cut”, a longstanding library grant program with $2.5 million annually.

Investing $172 million in each year of the two-year budget proposal to fully fund pre-K for all four-year-olds as well as funding full-day kindergarten are good investments, the Kentucky Education Association said.

KEA officials praised Beshear’s budget for including $26.3 million each year for student loan aid and for proposing a mandatory 5 percent across-the-board salary increase for every school employee.

“Governor Beshear’s budget proposal proves that he is optimistic about Kentucky. His proposed budget is not just historic, it is fiscally responsible. The $2 billion investment in P-12 public education will create brighter futures for Kentucky’s children,” said KEA President Eddie Campbell. “The governor’s education budget also acknowledges the real-world needs of parents who can now count on reduced childcare costs and increased educational opportunities for their kids.

Beshear said his budget provides the highest funding increase at nearly 12 percent in decades for higher education. In the last 12 years or more, about $250 million of general fund has been cut from nine public post secondary institutions. Past budget cuts led to tuition increases and cutbacks.

He included $60 million for the Bucks for Brains program to be matched dollar for dollar with private donations for research, aligning post secondary education with business and industry.

His budget proposal addresses maintaining buildings on public post secondary campuses. It includes $500 million from the general fund for asset preservation. There will be funds for 19 new capital projects for universities, including constructing a new Model Laboratory School for K-12 at Eastern Kentucky University and a new health education building at the University of Kentucky.

The budget helps post-secondary students by increasing the need-based financial program called College Access Program and the Kentucky tuition grant program. Beshear said that removes financial barriers for students.

Beshear announced the Better Kentucky Promise Scholarship which fills the gap between tuition and federal and other state aid for all new associate degree and certificate-seeking students at public universities and private, nonprofit Kentucky institutions.

“What this means is we can fully cover the cost for approximately 6,000 additional students in the first year and 9,700 in the second year,” Beshear said. “We are removing another barrier to higher education for those students that want to go to school but could not afford it.”

“These investments in higher education are truly significant contributions to better the lives of Kentucky’s people, who will help power historic progress in the state’s workforce and post-pandemic economy,” said Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education President Aaron Thompson.

“The significant investments that policymakers --Gov. Beshear and our legislative partners -- are proposing for higher education are really investments in the future of our state,” said Eli Capilouto, president of the University of Kentucky.

This story was originally published January 10, 2022 at 12:03 PM.