School funding

Schools had until March 2026 to spend remaining COVID relief money. The U.S. Department of Education cut those funds, amounting to about $200 million for California K-12 schools.

Rural school districts and counties are preparing for the potential loss of funding from the Secure Rural Schools program.

Last year California passed a law that prohibits schools from requiring staff to notify parents if a student identifies as transgender. The U.S. Department of Education alleges the law violates parents’ rights.

For the last century, the money has gone to counties with large amounts of federal land that can’t be taxed. Congress failed to include it in the upcoming budget.

Grant School District is hundreds of thousands of dollars into a project that is supposed to be reimbursed by the federal government. Now, it’s not clear the feds will pay.

In fact, those scores have decreased over time. That’s according to recent research examining public spending on education across the country, compared with reading and math test scores.

Oregon law restricts how much money schools can get from the state for students with disabilities. Lawmakers are considering raising the decades-old cap. A bill to eliminate the cap entirely is gaining traction.

Democratic and Republican U.S. legislators from Western states are joining forces to get the 20-years-old Secure Rural Schools bill reauthorized.

Over the past few years, the Oregon Legislature has responded to industry-wide labor shortages in manufacturing, tech and health care by directing millions of dollars to workforce development programs. Now, education advocates say it should do the same for child care and preschool teachers.

The biggest question this session is about how much money the state will invest in public schools for the next biennium. But it’s not the only question.

Federal funding for rural schools goes to 39 California counties. School districts in those communities consider the money a lifeline.

Every year, school boards across Oregon — and around the country — buckle down and spend months finalizing their district budgets.