Today is day 45 of session; we’re halfway through the second session, and three-fourths through the 26th Legislature. The pace will really pick up from here on out.
The finance committees are beginning to hear education-related legislation. Next week, the Senate Finance Committee will be hearing SB 221, Sen. President Gary Stevens’ legislation creating a task force on higher education. One of the things the task force will be looking at is how high schools are preparing students for college and career readiness.
Perhaps the legislature has decided after the success of the Joint Legislative Education Funding Task Force that temporary legislative task forces are the way to delve deeply into substantive issues, issues that demand more time than would be possible during session. If SB 221 passes, it will be interesting to see if it has as much of a transformative effect on secondary and postsecondary education as the JLEFTF had on funding issues for K-12.
Senators Joe Paskvan, Dennis Egan, and Gary Stevens during the closeout hearing of the Senate Finance DEED Subcommittee, March 20, 2012
