The high-profile Kirwan Blueprint bill, HB 1300, is moving in the House, and will be on an accelerated path into the Senate. Here’s what to watch.

The two House subcommittees on Appropriations and Ways and Means have approved the heavily-amended Kirwan bill, HB 1300, and it is scheduled for “lengthy” debate on Friday, March 6.

The working draft is available online as a “reprint,” and amendments incorporated into the bill. Stakeholders are drafting amendments to the page and line numbers of the reprint.

Among the most consequential areas of the bill affecting county funding are in the new Education §5-235, on page 53 of the reprint.

The Fiscal Note on the bill contains a good deal of detail on its facets, but currently still references the bill as introduced, before Committee amendments.

NEW: a revised set of fiscal effects were made available Friday afternoon, reflecting the House adopted amendments.

The “Relief” table distributed to House members earlier this week is shown below – encompassing the series of amendments that alter the required county contributions under the bill.

If your county is trying to track the projected fiscal effect on its school funding requirements, we believe the best means to do so is a two-part process:

-start with the fiscal note, page 33

-subtract any amount shown above

-the result should be the funding obligation, above current funding trends, under the House-amended bill

edit: the House of Delegates resisted a number of amendments to the bill, as it passed through its preliminary “second reading” consideration on Friday.

Details may be viewed on the morning/afternoon proceedings, House Proceedings No. 42 A.

A “third reading” House vote is likely to be held later on Friday.

Conduit Street will continue to cover the House debate and vote, and the Senate actions, in the days ahead.