Laura Kelly signs Kansas K-12 budget but vetoes no-bid contract for school security grants

Gov. Laura Kelly on Wednesday signed the Legislature's 2024 bill funding K-12 public schools, including an increase in special education funding.

Kelly said that Senate Bill 387 "represents a continued commitment to our students and our schools. This bill fully funds public education for a sixth consecutive year, providing additional funding for the BASE State Aid in accordance with the Gannon mandate.

"Additionally, this bill provides $75 million in new special education funding, enacting the first year of a phased-in approach for the state to meet its statutory obligation to fully fund special education."

Kelly also touted $5 million for public-private partnerships to support child care providers in rural northwest Kansas, $23.7 million for early childhood education and literacy, $3.1 million for teacher workforce support and $5 million for school safety grants.

Sen. Molly Baumgardner, R-Louisburg, is chair of the Senate Education Committee.

"We focused on crafting increased school funding that better addresses the needs of our Kansas students and our dedicated teachers and staff members," Baumgardner said in a statement via the governor's office. "Our commitment to distributing increased special education funding in a more equitable way to Kansas school districts was accomplished by collaborating directly with the Department of Education leadership team."

Rep. Kristey Williams, R-August, is chair of the House K-12 Education Budget Committee.

"Meeting our Constitutional obligation plus an additional $75 million for special education shows the Legislature's commitment to supporting our students, teachers, and schools," Williams said in a statement via House GOP leadership. "With almost $5 billion of State dollars allocated every year, we are also dedicated to ensuring there's more accountability and transparency as we work toward improved student achievement."

Kelly vetoes proviso creating no-bid contract

When legislators wrote the budget, the included a proviso on using school safety and security grants to buy and install "security cameras that are compatible with the firearm detection software specified in paragraph (3)." The details in that paragraph effectively turned the grant program into a no-bid contract for the only company that met those specifications.

Legislative staff wrote in the bill explainer that the proviso required the grant funds "only be used for a pilot program with ZeroEyes to add software to existing cameras to identify firearms within schools."

The Associated Press reported that ZeroEyes, a firm founded by military veterans after a school shooting in Florida, touted their technology to Kansas lawmakers while also being the only qualified firm to benefit from similar legislation in other states.

In her veto message, Kelly said it turned the grant program "into a no-bid contract by inserting requirements that eliminate nearly all potential competition." She also took issue with restricting schools from using the funds for other school safety efforts, such as hiring more security staff or purchasing communications systems, arguing they should have flexibility to use the money "to address needs that are of utmost priority to student safety."

"We must continue to work together to ensure our students have a safe, conducive environment for their learning," Kelly said. "To do that, we should not hamstring districts by limiting this funding opportunity to services provided by one company."

Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for The Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: New Kansas K-12 public school budget boosts special education funding