The Senate Education Committee met to consider committee work on a slate of education bills and voted to advance or amend several measures while rejecting one proposal to mandate intelligent design content.

The committee chair, Senator Beard, opened the session noting there were no public bill hearings scheduled and outlined the items for committee action. Committee members discussed substantive changes to multiple bills, heard proposed amendments from the sponsor or staff, and recorded formal committee votes on each measure.

Why it matters: The committee votes determine whether measures move out of committee to the full Senate and shape whether school districts and state agencies must alter notification practices, adopt new accreditation options, build new student education requirements or change parental notification policies for surveys.

What the committee acted on

Charter-schools bill (Senate Bill 2241): The committee voted to give the bill a “do pass” recommendation as amended. The committee previously addressed a clerical amendment and proceeded with a vote; the motion for a due pass as amended was made by Senator Gearhart and seconded by Senator Axman. The clerk reported 4 yeas, 0 nays, 2 not voting. The committee assigned a senator to carry the bill to the floor.

Annexation notice for school-district boundaries (Senate Bill 2351, amendment 25.1342.01003): Members debated an amendment that would require the county superintendent to send certified-mail notice at least 14 days before a public hearing to each owner of real property to be annexed into a school district and to publish notice of the hearing. The amendment clarified “owners of real property to be annexed” to narrow notice from a potentially county-wide set of owners to only those directly affected. The committee adopted the amendment (5 yeas, 0 nays, 1 not voting) and then gave the amended bill a due-pass recommendation (5 yeas, 0 nays, 1 not voting). The transcript indicates the change was intended to ensure property owners directly affected by annexation receive certified notice and that hearing testimony may address potential changes to property tax obligations and student transportation.

Accreditation options and state-provided accreditation (Senate Bill 2362, Superintendent Basler’s proposed amendment): The committee considered and edited an amendment that would (1) make certain selection steps permissive (changing shall/must to may in parts), (2) allow the superintendent of public instruction to contract for state-provided accreditation and offer it at no charge, and (3) make districts responsible for any accreditation costs if they accept a state-approved option. Committee members debated whether to name specific stakeholder organizations in the statute; an amendment striking named organizations and replacing them with general references to “education stakeholder groups” and school administrators passed. The committee then gave the bill a due-pass recommendation as amended (4 yeas, 1 nay, 1 not voting).

Intelligent design in schools (Senate Bill 2355): Committee members debated a bill that would have included intelligent-design material in K–12 instruction. Several members said they support exposure to varied viewpoints but were concerned about making the topic mandatory in public school science curricula, potential litigation, and developmental appropriateness. A motion for a “do not pass” was made by Senator Gearhart and seconded by Senator Axman; the committee carried the do-not-pass motion (4 yeas, 1 nay, 1 not voting). The committee assigned a carrier for the do-not-pass action.

Human-trafficking education (Senate Bill 2330, sponsor amendment 25.0551.05004): The sponsor submitted an amendment that substantially narrowed the proposal: it added tribal schools to the definition, limited required student education to grades 4–12 rather than K–12, removed a mandatory annual two-hour faculty training requirement, and made other technical adjustments. Committee members debated the developmental appropriateness of certain topics for younger students and whether the statutory list of suggested content should be mandatory or permissive; a change replacing mandatory language with permissive language where noted was accepted. The amendment passed (5 yeas, 0 nays, 1 not voting), and the amended bill received a due-pass recommendation (5 yeas, 0 nays, 1 not voting). The sponsor’s amendment clarified the appropriation remains under $50,000 as drafted.

Parental notice or opt-in for certain student surveys (Senate Bill 2105): Members debated a bill addressing student surveys (including the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, YRBS) and the parental-notice process. The committee adopted an amendment that explicitly exempts surveys administered or approved by a licensed teacher or school administrator, including centers for career and technical education, from the bill’s restrictions; that amendment passed (4 yeas, 0 nays, 2 not voting). The committee then gave the amended bill a due-pass recommendation (vote recorded as 3 yays, 1 nay, 2 not voting) and assigned a carrier.

Votes at a glance

- SB 2241 (charter schools) — Motion: due pass as amended; mover: Senator Gearhart; seconder: Senator Axman; committee vote: 4 yeas, 0 nays, 2 not voting; outcome: advanced (do pass as amended).
- SB 2351 (annexation notice to affected property owners) — Amendment 25.1342.01003 adopted (mover: Senator Lam; seconder: Senator Axman) 5–0–1; bill as amended: due pass (5–0–1); outcome: advanced as amended.
- SB 2362 (accreditation options / state-provided accreditation) — Amendment (Superintendent Basler’s language with adjustments to stakeholder list and permissive language) adopted; committee vote on final bill: 4–1–1; outcome: advanced as amended.
- SB 2355 (intelligent design instruction) — Motion: do not pass (mover: Senator Gearhart; seconder: Senator Axman); committee vote: 4–1–1; outcome: do not pass (measure not advanced).
- SB 2330 (human-trafficking education) — Sponsor’s amendment 25.0551.05004 adopted (mover: Senator — sponsor; recorded changes described above) 5–0–1; bill as amended: due pass (5–0–1); outcome: advanced as amended.
- SB 2105 (student surveys / parental notice) — Amendment to exempt licensed teacher/administrator-approved surveys including CTE centers adopted (4–0–2); bill as amended: due pass (3–1–2); outcome: advanced as amended.

What the committee did not do

Two bills were held for later committee work and one senator, Senator Wabamah, was noted as absent for health reasons. The chair indicated the committee will reconvene the following morning for additional house bills.

Where to look next

Bills that received a “do pass” recommendation will be carried to the Senate floor by the senators the committee designated; bills that the committee amended will move forward with the committee’s amended language. The committee record will show the specific amendment texts and the committee roll votes listed above.

Ending note: The committee’s recorded votes indicate several bipartisan unanimous or near‑unanimous recommendations but also a clear split on the intelligent-design measure and a single dissent on accreditation language.