Under The Dome: Capitol Insights from UEA

Public school funding shift advances; tax-return option targets lunch debt

January 27, 2026

SB 62, School Funding Amendments
Sen. Lincoln Fillmore, R-District 17, Salt Lake City

Sen. Fillmore’s bill proposes a significant change to a public school funding mechanism. Currently, schools are funded based on the prior-year ADM (average daily membership) plus enrollment growth. If the bill passes, ADM would no longer be used, and the Oct. 1 student count would be used instead. Sen. Fillmore believes the proposed change would more accurately fund where students are attending school, but the concern is that losing ADM would reduce stability and predictability in year-to-year funding. If the change is made, it would reallocate about $77 million, and the current bill does not include provisions for where that money would be reallocated. The bill is expected to be revised as the budget process moves forward. The bill passed 4-2.

HB 148, Tax Return Donation Amendments
Rep. Matt MacPherson, R-District 26, Salt Lake County

HB 148 creates a voluntary option for Utah taxpayers to donate a portion of their state tax return to help pay down school lunch debt in local school districts. The contribution is optional, and taxpayers may choose to donate any amount. This approach allows Utahns to directly support students and families while keeping participation voluntary.

The bill passed unanimously out of committee, where it received bipartisan praise from committee members. Legislators highlighted the bill as a practical solution that addresses a growing challenge faced by schools.

HB 148 is a positive step forward that would support school districts and help ensure students across the state have access to meals without the burden of unpaid lunch debt.

5% public education budget cuts ahead: what the appropriations subcommittee discussed Jan. 23

January 26, 2026
 

The Public Education Appropriations Subcommittee (PEA) met Friday, Jan. 23, to discuss a required 5% cut to Utah’s public education budget, directed by the Executive Appropriations Committee. The cuts are needed because of the loss of federal funding tied to President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” which was signed into law in July 2025.

 The subcommittee heard three presentations (each taking a very different approach) from Legislative Fiscal Analysis (LFA), the Utah State Board of Education (USBE), and the Governor’s Office.

 LFA approach: formula adjustments instead of program cuts
The Legislative Fiscal Analysis’ proposal focused on statewide formula adjustments and reduced growth assumptions, rather than cutting specific schools or programs outright. Major components included savings from enrollment growth, reversing a planned deposit to the Public Education Stabilization Account, and reducing flexible funding to districts and charters. A significant impact of this approach is educator pay: LFA proposes a 5% educator salary increase, rather than the expected 4%, by tying the increase to current-year inflation rather than prior-year WPU growth. This change would be felt statewide.

 USBE approach: flat reductions across programs
The Utah State Board of Education largely proposed a flat 5% cut across nearly every program, including state-level programs and grants, administrative functions, and major Minimum School Program items such as educator salary adjustments, student supports, and transportation. Some committee members expressed frustration, noting that the approach lacked prioritization and failed to distinguish between high-impact programs and lower-priority items.

 Governor’s Office: priorities without specific cuts
The Governor’s Office did not present specific reductions. Instead, they offered a values-based framework to guide legislative decisions, emphasizing the importance of protecting educator compensation, literacy initiatives, and school safety.

 Why this matters

No matter which approach lawmakers choose, the challenges for public education are real. Cuts will affect educator pay, student supports, and classroom resources. Impacts will be felt statewide, especially in a system that serves the vast majority of Utah’s students.

 The UEA believes the only way to reduce harm to public education is to cut funding from the unconstitutional Utah Fits All program. Right now, it is funded at $122 million a year, while the State of Utah is appealing the ruling in a UEA lawsuit that found it unconstitutional. 

By shifting cuts there, the legislature can better protect public schools that serve more than 90% of Utah students. Contact your legislators and urge them to protect public school funding.

Senate Education Committee advances UEA-backed bill to include school nurses in salary adjustment

January 22, 2026

The Senate Education Committee held its first meeting of Utah’s 2026 legislative session on January 22, advancing several bills, including SB 75 — a Utah Education Association legislative priority — with multiple measures receiving unanimous support.

SB 75, Educator Salary Adjustment Eligibility, would add school-registered nurses to the legislative educator salary adjustment program, valued at $10,350 per year. Sen. Calvin Musselman presented the bill on behalf of UEA, joined by Marie Evans, a Weber Education Association member and school registered nurse. The committee passed the bill unanimously.
 

Other measures advanced by the committee include:

• SB 51, School Safety Modifications (Substitute 1): Requested by the legislative School Security Taskforce, the bill would create a process for local education agencies to share information about credible student threats when students transfer between LEAs. It passed unanimously.
• SB 69, School Device Revisions (Substitute 1): The bill would expand last year’s restriction on student cellphone use during instructional hours to a bell-to-bell prohibition, while keeping exemptions (including medical necessity and IEP plans) and adding allowances for LEA-determined exemptions. It would take effect July 1. The bill passed 6-1, with Sen. Riebe voting no, citing concerns it is “heavy-handed.”
• SB 119, School and Classroom Amendments: The bill would change how the public education economic stabilization account may be used, including allowing stabilization funds to cover the inflationary adjustment to the Weighted Pupil Unit under certain federal tax policy impacts. The bill passed 4-2.
• SB 52, Substitute Teaching Requirements Amendments: The bill would remove the requirement that long-term substitute teachers hold a teaching license. Davis Education Association President Kallyn Gren spoke in support, citing the challenges of securing long-term coverage in an emergency. The bill passed unanimously.
• SB 58, Public School Attendance Amendments: In response to concerns identified in a Utah State Board of Education audit, the bill would create uniform statewide definitions for attendance in traditional and virtual schools, along with uniform monitoring and accountability requirements for LEAs. It also would allow school community councils to use school trust funds to address chronic absenteeism. The bill passed 3-1.
• SB 88, School Technology Amendments: The bill would require LEAs to provide a parent-accessible monitoring system for student use of school-managed devices and adopt content filtering that limits access to preapproved websites and digital resources. The bill passed 3-1.

The Public Education Appropriations Subcommittee met Jan. 21, 2026, receiving a briefing from the Utah State Board of Education on its strategic plan and reviewing the public education base budget — the starting point for appropriations as lawmakers consider adjustments for inflation, enrollment changes and technical updates.

Base budget highlights presented to the subcommittee show public education funding projected to increase by about $191 million to keep up with inflation, a 4.2% increase reflected in per-student funding. The proposal also includes about $43 million added to the education stabilization account and about $19 million more for educator pay adjustments tied to growth in eligible educators.

A projected statewide enrollment decline of just over 2% is expected to reduce funding by about $28 million in the basic school program, with reductions in several programs to match lower enrollment. After offsets, ongoing funding is reduced by about $12.5 million, with a one-time $6.4 million backfill in the current year.

The presentation also notes continued decreases in school property tax rates, while total local revenue increases due to higher property values.