The Senate Education Committee unanimously recommended House Bill 204, which makes technical fixes to a three-year pilot program that provides stipends to future educators.

Representative Karen Peterson summarized the bill as corrective changes after the pilot’s first year. HB 204 clarifies that district employees who serve in extracurricular roles (for example, a teacher who also coaches) should not automatically be excluded from stipend eligibility. It also broadens eligibility to include students who live in Utah and student-teach in Utah but are enrolled in out-of-state online programs (for example, online university programs), provided they sign an affidavit committing to teach in Utah.

The bill also requests reporting from the State Board of Education about expected participant counts to help budgeting. A school principal who testified in support said the stipends could help address teacher shortages; the witness noted difficulty filling special-education positions in particular. Committee members asked no substantive follow-up questions, and the committee approved the bill with a unanimous favorable recommendation.