One Roof, Countless Benefits

Government efficiency continues to be a hot topic for elected officials. For the second year in a row, leaders in Kansas are pushing a plan to consolidate early childhood programs and services currently spread across multiple state departments. Bills filed last week in both chambers would reduce regulatory burdens to streamline the childcare licensing process and create an Office of Early Childhood to house existing programs in other departments under one roof. 

This bi-partisan legislative effort stems from the recommendations of the Early Childhood Transition Task Force, which Governor Laura Kelly established in 2022 to evaluate the State's early learning system and propose a roadmap for consolidation. 

Consolidation would help the State better serve children and families while expanding access to affordable, quality childcare. According to Kelly, "This compromise agreement will increase government efficiency, transparency, and accountability while streamlining how we provide these critical services, allowing Kansas to support young families, businesses, and communities in every corner of the state." 

In her State of the State address in January, Kelly explained that under the current structure, childcare providers must navigate through three state agencies to get licensed, receive workforce support, and secure funding before they can open their doors and serve families. "There are too many barriers, too many portals, too much hassle. We need to fix it," she added. 

Government structures across states vary significantly. According to the Education Commission of the States, there are three general categories for early care and education systems: 

1. Created – A single state agency is responsible for overseeing early care and education programs. Eleven states follow this model. 
2. Consolidated – Multiple agencies or programs are merged into one unified entity to streamline services. Fourteen states and the District of Columbia have adopted this approach.  
3. Coordinated – Various agencies manage separate programs and services, requiring interagency collaboration for effective implementation. Twenty-five states operate under this model. 

Kansas would adopt a 'consolidated' model, improving the State's current fragmented approach. By bringing childcare licensing, early learning funding, and workforce support under one agency, states can streamline decision-making, eliminate redundant bureaucracy, and provide a single entry point for families and providers. 

This approach makes it easier for families and providers to access the support they need by cutting through layers of bureaucracy. Policies are more transparent, with a single agency overseeing early childhood programs, and transitions into K-12 schools are seamless. A well-structured system also ensures funding goes where needed most—directly into classrooms and communities. 

Aligned's Take: Missouri moved to a consolidated structure in 2022 with the creation of the Office of Childhood through executive order. However, the rocky rollout of a new data system led to subsidy payment delays that financially strained childcare providers. Kansas can avoid Missouri's pitfalls by prioritizing implementation to make sure that funding structures and the regulatory framework support childcare providers.

Missouri Update

A Market-Based Approach to Fixing Child Care 

Missouri's childcare system is in a crisis. The cost of high-quality infant and toddler care can exceed $20,000 annually. However, providers often must charge rates far below the actual cost of care, leading to chronically low wages for childcare professionals – often as low as $15 per hour. This unsustainable situation creates a severe workforce shortage, making it difficult to attract and retain qualified caregivers. This shortage directly impacts families' ability to work and businesses' ability to find employees. 

While a free market ideally self-corrects, the economics of childcare don't align without strategic intervention. Rather than expanding government bureaucracy, we can learn from successful public-private partnerships in states like Michigan and Kentucky. These models demonstrate how state government, families, and employers can share the cost of childcare, each contributing roughly one-third. This approach maximizes the impact of taxpayer dollars while encouraging private-sector investment. 

Kids Win Missouri, with the support of Aligned, proposes the Missouri Community Childcare Exchange, a similar public-private partnership. This Exchange offers a fiscally responsible solution to stabilize the childcare workforce, expand access for working families, and help businesses retain their employees. This is not simply an expenditure; it is an investment in Missouri's workforce, its families, and its economic future. 

Read the proposal here.

Senate Activity

Bills passing this week

• SCR 3 (Carter) Modifying the Mission of Missouri Southern State University 
• SB 59 (Carter) First Responder, Veteran, and Educator Tax Deductions

Senate bills of interest

• Student Surveys - On Monday, the Senate Government Efficiency Committee heard SB223 (Coleman), which prohibits school districts from distributing student surveys without prior parental review and consent.
• First Responder College Tuition - On Tuesday, the Senate Education Committee heard SB71 (D.Gregory), which establishes a program to provide free college tuition for eligible first responders and their dependents at public colleges and universities in the state.
• School Safety - On Tuesday, the Senate Education Committee heard SB68 (Henderson) - Requiring the reporting of certain school safety incidents and prohibiting the use of cell phones by students during instructional time.
• Open Enrollment - On Tuesday, the Senate Education Committee passed SB215 (Trent), which creates provisions governing the enrollment of nonresident students in public and public charter school districts and requires the resident district to provide transportation to transferring students and pay the cost of tuition as set by the nonresident district by a vote of 5-2.
• Career Tech Certificate - On Tuesday, the Senate Education Committee passed SB150 (Carter), which allows any student who has met the qualifications for the A+ Scholars Program to qualify for reimbursement for the costs associated with tuition, books, or fees associated with completion of an eligible certificate program from a public or private postsecondary institution, vocational school, community college, or certified training provider for careers in certain high-needs fields as designated by the Coordinating Board for Higher Education by a vote of 7-0.
• St. Louis County Early Childhood Tax - On Tuesday, the Senate Progress and Development Committee heard SB20 (Williams), which establishes a process for the utilization of revenue generated for early childhood education in St. Louis County.

Next week in the Senate

No bills of interest have been posted for hearings yet.

House Activity

Bills Passing This Week

• HB 737 (Schmidt) An omnibus child protection bill

House Bills of Interest

• Lead in School Drinking Water - On Monday, the House Conservation Committee heard HB995 (Knight), modifying provisions of the Get the Lead Out of School Drinking Water Act of 2022.
• School Administrator Expenditures - On Tuesday, the House Government Efficiency Committee heard HB341 (Keathley), which requires at least 88% of salary expenditures by school districts to be dedicated to instructional staff salaries, with the minimum percentage increasing by 1% each year until reaching 95%.
• Cell Phone Bans - On Tuesday, the House Elementary & Secondary Education Committee passed a combined HB306 (Steinhoff), HB408 (Gragg), and HB 854 (Lewis), which create provisions governing student cell phone use during instructional time, by a vote of 20-0.
• Media Literacy, Critical Thinking, & Appropriate Online Behavior - On Tuesday, the House Elementary & Secondary Education Committee heard HB116 (Murphy), which establishes a pilot program across 7 diverse schools in the state for the instruction of media literacy, critical thinking, and appropriate online behavior. 
• Open Enrollment - On Tuesday, the House Legislative Review Committee passed a modified HB711 (Pollitt), which establishes transfer protocols for nonresident student transfers in public schools in the state.
• Allergies in Childcare Facilities - On Tuesday, the House Health and Mental Health Committee heard HB222 (Schulte), which adds licensed childcare facilities to the locations authorized for a physician prescription of an EpiPen and requires licensed childcare facilities to develop food-borne allergen response plans.

Next Week in the House

• Childcare Tax Credits - On Monday the House Rules Committee is scheduled in Executive Session to consider HB269 (Shields), establishing 3 tax credit incentive programs for employers.
• Reading Instruction - On Wednesday, the House Elementary & Secondary Education Committee will hear HB941 (Lewis), which prohibits school districts from using a "three-queuing" model of reading instruction.
• Teacher Externships - On Wednesday, the House Elementary & Secondary Education Committee will hear HB267 (Shields), which expands opportunities for teacher externships to gain advanced skills outside of the teaching field.
• Teachers of Tomorrow - On Wednesday, the House Elementary & Secondary Education Committee will hear HB1153 (Williams), which establishes provisions for the licensing of certain professionals under the "Teachers of Tomorrow" program. 

Read the weekly legislative report.

Budget and Revenue

On Monday, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) presented its FY26 budget request to the House Budget Committee, outlining priorities for education spending and childcare programs in the state.

The Department outlined several changes to the FY26 budget proposal, including:

• A recalculation of the State Adequacy Target (SAT), which occurs every two years and is a benchmark for the minimum amount to be spent per pupil in public education throughout the state, increasing from $6,760 to $7,145.
• A $15 million increase to the small schools’ grants program for districts with fewer than 350 students as required by the passage of SB 727 in 2024.
• $55.8 million for school district programs offering instruction to children at or below 185% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) in the year before Kindergarten.
• $20 million for capital improvements and operations at the state’s 34 career and technical centers.
• $5.3 million for the state to employ regional school district reading and instructional intervention coaches to assist teachers in identifying and implementing successful reading and literacy instruction strategies.
• $20.7 million increase for the state to provide therapies and services to children aged 3-21 with severe disabilities or special needs.  
• $10 million in federal childcare development block grant fund to provide competitive grant awards to business and community partners providing innovate childcare solutions; and
• $7 million for the Charter School Capital Improvement Fund.

Members of the Committee also spent a significant amount of time discussing the effect of declining lottery and gaming revenues on funding for education.

Specifically, the Committee expressed concern over the relatively small amount of funding the implementation of sports betting is expected to generate for the state and what impact the potential expansion of Video Lottery Terminals will have on revenue generated by casinos in the state. Currently, approximately $1.5 million is expected to be generated by sports betting in the state, although the amount varies based on a percentage of profit made by sports betting entities. 

State Board of Education reviews governor's recommendation

On Tuesday, DESE officials presented the governor's budget recommendations to state board members. Governor Mike Kehoe elected to pull back $200 million in state aid for PK-12 education, a figure associated with the increase in the state adequacy target that stems from the calculation changes mandated by the Missouri School Improvement Program.

Despite the fact that the governor is not fully funding the foundation formula, Deputy Commissioner Kari Monsees told the board, "The grand total of new general revenue in our budget alone is $464 million. It's significant. It's a big number. And I would suggest that that's probably historic in many, many ways for any department in state government."

In other news

• Trump Administration's research cuts could cost Missouri $100 million
• St. Louis' Charter schools open doors as education policy remains a key topic
• Carnegie Foundation gives top research nod to 11 universities in MO and IL
• Schools may choose to adopt new learning standards for counselors
• Budget battle brewing over Gov. Kehoe's proposed budget for education

Kansas Update

Kansas Budget Challenges and What They Mean for K-12 Education 

As lawmakers shape the state budget, education funding remains at the center of the debate, with special education funding deliberations, overall budget tightening, and tax cut proposals all converging to shape the financial landscape. 

On Thursday night, members of the House Appropriations Committee decreased the governor’s proposed increase of $72.6 million for special education to $10 million, citing school funding increases from inflation adjustments as sufficient to make up for special education expenses. Districts would still receive more than $600 million from the state to fund special education under the current version of the budget. 

While Kansas law mandates the state cover 92% of excess special education costs by 2029, the current budget only funds 73%, leaving school districts to shift money from general education to cover shortfalls. 

Additional budget cuts include a 1.5% reduction in state operating expenses, although aid to school districts and higher education remains untouched. 

A Strained Fiscal Outlook

Kansas is spending more than it’s taking in, with projected deficits of $1.3 billion in 2025 and $416 million in 2026, despite a $1.8 billion rainy-day fund. 

The state’s ending balance is expected to shrink from $3.2 billion in 2024 to just $152 million by 2029, raising questions about how sustainable current spending levels will be in the long term. 

At the same time, a House committee approved a property tax cut for schools (HB 2011) costing $823 million over five years. The bill would require the state to backfill some lost appropriations from property taxes.  

With Kansas’s financial reserves declining, legislators face tough choices on how to balance education funding, tax cuts, and overall fiscal discipline. Although proposals like HB 2011 would require some state backfill, it would reduce stable local property tax revenue and increase district reliance on more volatile state funding. Given projected revenue shortfalls, it may not fully cover the projected base amount of funding going forward.  

Aligned's take: We will continue monitoring the state’s budget negotiations and their impact on K-12 education funding as the session progresses. However, the current debate over special education funding highlights the need for further data and research to inform better ways to fund special education.

HB 2303 and the Future of Kansas’s SLDS 

This past Tuesday, HB 2303 received a hearing in the House K-12 Education Budget Committee, where Aligned testified in support alongside the Kansas Chamber of Commerce. The bill aimed to establish a Statewide Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) to provide policymakers, educators, and employers with comprehensive, aggregate data that aligns education and workforce programs with Kansas’s economic needs. 

While the idea received broad support, budget constraints suggest an uncertain future for the legislation. The challenge is not the value of an SLDS but the fiscal realities shaping state spending decisions. We deeply appreciate the committee’s engagement, the thoughtful questions about student privacy, and the commitment of legislators on both sides of the aisle who see the importance of improving data-driven decision-making. 

Though the bill may not advance this session, Aligned remains committed to this effort. We will continue working with legislators interested in exploring the next steps internally, helping them understand the decision-making process, the structure of a request for proposals (RFP) to engage vendors, and best practices learned from other states with successful SLDS implementations.

Additionally, we will provide ongoing guidance and research to ensure the state has a well-informed plan to implement a secure and effective SLDS when Kansas is ready to move forward. Conversations with lawmakers and stakeholders will continue as the demand for better data to drive education and workforce decisions remains strong. 

A stronger, more informed education and workforce system remains a priority. We look forward to continuing this conversation and laying the groundwork for future action. 

Read the legislative report.

In other news

• How would Wichita’s $450M school bond issue affect your property taxes? 
• A Kansas House bill would transform tenure. 
• Three education-related bills introduced during week 5
• State Board approves updated evidence-based at-risk list

Last week in Washington, D.C., the head of the nation's leading human resources association told a congressional committee that the "education-to-employment pipeline is leaky, broken, and busted" and cited several staggering statistics that reflect low literacy rates and a lack of practical skills among students in the United States.

At the hearing, which was titled,  "The State of American Education” and held by the House Committee on Education and Workforce, Johnny C. Taylor, Jr, the president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), an organization comprised of 340,000 members across the globe testified that, "Over the past few decades, K-12 education has shifted away from vocational training, co-op programs and trade education, leaving students without practical skills that prepare them for immediate employment."

SHRM research shows that 3 in 4 organizations report difficulty finding qualified individuals, with the top two drivers being organizational growth (55%) and changing technology (51%).

Read Taylor's testimony

In recent years, federal, state, and local governments have strongly emphasized work-based learning. Despite this increased attention, many challenges remain, with much of the burden now falling on community colleges. As a result, there is a growing gap in early workforce training, leaving many high school graduates unprepared as they transition into employment.

Taylor recommends the following:

• Align higher education with workforce needs to meet employer demand and help graduates secure relevant jobs, expanding skills-based hiring.

• Strengthen vocational & work-based learning to better prepare students for relevant careers.

• Remove barriers to employment for military veterans, caregivers, older workers, and individuals with disabilities who bring valuable skills to unlock the full potential of untapped talent.

Review hearing recap.

Aligned’s Take: While federal action is critical, state-level solutions play a key role in strengthening the education-to-employment pipeline. Aligned is working to fix these broken pipelines by advocating for policies that better connect education and workforce needs. One major initiative is our state longitudinal data system (SLDS) bill in Kansas, which would create a secure, comprehensive system to track student progress from early education through their careers.

Upcoming Events at Aligned

Q&A: Why you should attend our Edunomics Event?

Why should you attend?

Education finance is at the center of major policy decisions. This program equips you with the knowledge to navigate funding complexities and make smart decisions.

What will you learn?

✔️ Cost drivers in education

✔️ Allocation and accountability structures

✔️ ESSA and state policy effects

✔️ And more!

What do you get?

3.0 CEUs, 36 CPEs, or 30 PD credits

Join us in Kansas City this June 10-11th!

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Thank you to our sponsors!

Venue Sponsor - Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

Platinum Sponsor - Missouri Charter School Association

Gold Sponsors - U.S. Engineering & Holland 1916 Inc.

Bronze Sponsors - JE Dunn Construction & KIDaccount

There’s no better time to understand education finance than now, with the ongoing political debates at the federal level affecting how resources are allocated to local schools.

In lieu of a Valentine this year, we are sharing our 2024 Annual Report! ;)

With love ❤️,

Torree Pederson

President

Aligned

Torree@WeAreAligned.org

(913) 484-4202

Linda Rallo

Vice President

Aligned

Linda@WeAreAligned.org

(314) 330-8442

About Aligned

Aligned is the only state-wide non-profit, nonpartisan business group working in Kansas and Missouri on educational issues impacting the full development of our children, from supporting high-quality early learning to solid secondary programs that provide rigorous academic programs and real-world learning opportunities.

Our vision is that our public education systems in Kansas and Missouri have the resources and flexibility to prepare students to pursue the future of their choice.

We are currently focused on education policies that will strengthen early childhood education, teacher recruitment and retention, and school finance reform.

Learn more about our work.