Alaska pursues appeal of $17.5 million penalty over federal education funding equity dispute

Deena Bishop, commissioner of nan Alaska Department of Education and Early Development, speaks astatine a news convention connected March 15, 2024, pinch Gov. Mike Dunleavy. (Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)

Consequences are mounting for Alaska arsenic a conflict continues betwixt nan state’s acquisition officials and their national counterparts complete whether nan authorities spent pandemic alleviation equitably.

The U.S. Department of Education has said it will withhold $17.5 cardinal successful national assistance costs from nan authorities until it comes into compliance pinch national guidelines for equity for nan state’s lowest-income schoolhouse districts.

The state’s acquisition section disputes nan assertion that it has not equitably funded schools and is appealing nan decision.

On Friday, Adam Schott, nan main lawman adjunct caput of nan U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, alerted Alaska Education Commissioner Deena Bishop that he would withhold another $5.56 cardinal successful national alleviation costs from nan state. That brings nan full forfeit of national assistance money to astir $17.5 cardinal aft a first withholding of $11.89 million at nan extremity of June. The sum equals nan magnitude nan national authorities says nan authorities owes definite schoolhouse districts.

Now nan authorities must take to either spot nan American Rescue Plan Act costs return to nan national authorities aliases administer them to definite schoolhouse districts.

In a Tuesday email, Bishop said nan authorities would proceed pinch appeals it has been pursuing.

“Alaska distributed nan ARP Act backing according to nan national guidelines. The situation of the… programme is not astir really overmuch nan State of Alaska spends connected education, but really it disperses its ain money,” she said. “I guidelines down our bi-partisan legislatively approved acquisition backing formula, and will proceed to do truthful successful nan champion liking of our students.”

The announcement of mislaid national dollars for nan 2 fiscal years stretching from July 2021 to July 2023 comes successful nan aforesaid week arsenic nan Anchorage Daily News reported nan authorities mislaid out on $52 cardinal successful national proscription dollars due to an error-filled application.

Schott noted that nan national acquisition section has made method assistance disposable to nan authorities for astir 2 years to thief it meet its obligations.

“Alaska is nan only State that has not complied pinch these statutory, non-waivable requirements for FY 2022 and 1 of conscionable 2 States to person not met nan corresponding FY 2023 requirements,” Schott wrote.

His missive reminded authorities officials that they agreed to meet those requirements erstwhile they accepted astir $359 cardinal successful national acquisition funds.

Bishop said nan authorities section could not find really nan national authorities came to its conclusions and sent a missive successful August that asked for an explanation.

She said “the expertise to find programme guidelines is minimal” and pointed retired that nan requirements are not codified successful rule and only disposable connected a authorities website.

“Other states facing nan aforesaid circumstance, and having been disappointment pinch this process, person settled pinch nan US DOE simply to halt nan endless circles of appeals and unresponsiveness,” her email said.

This punishment comes aft Alaska incurred a national “high risk” designation in March that could costs nan authorities assistance backing and a federal regularisation placed connected astir $1 cardinal successful assistance funds in May.

The dispute

Alaska officials person resisted a national informing that said nan authorities underfunded definite schoolhouse districts and grounded to afloat comply pinch requirements for spending $359 cardinal successful pandemic alleviation grants. The assistance costs are from nan American Recovery Plan Act, which was intended to stabilize schools aft pandemic closures.

When nan national authorities awarded those grants, it required that states not trim nan magnitude of backing per student to definite schoolhouse districts beneath nan magnitude they received successful 2019, nan twelvemonth straight preceding nan pandemic. The covered districts see schools that service high-poverty areas aliases high-needs students. That is called “maintenance of equity.”

This is wherever national officials opportunity Alaska has tally afoul of their guidance; immoderate districts sewage little authorities money successful 2022 than they did successful 2019.

They opportunity nan authorities owes nan Kenai Peninsula Borough School District $5.48 cardinal and Anchorage School District $6.4 cardinal for nan 2022 fiscal year. To dress up for 2023 shortfalls, national officials opportunity nan Juneau, Anchorage, Kenai Peninsula and Fairbanks districts are owed a full of $5.56 cardinal by nan state. The latest punishment reflects nan full magnitude nan national authorities says nan authorities government owes for nan 2023 fiscal year.

Schott’s missive says nan authorities must make nan required supplemental payments now, aliases participate a general written statement for costs astatine a early date.

At a June Board of Education and Early Development meeting, Bishop sought to guarantee committee members nan national dollars meant for schoolhouse districts had “already been dispersed and are already used, and there’s not a problem pinch them.”

These are nan grants from which nan national authorities is now withholding millions of dollars.

State acquisition officials person said that they judge nan authorities did travel national law, and that a diminution successful immoderate districts’ assistance was owed to nan authorities applying a federally approved look for per-student funding. In June, a nationalist acquisition funding expert said many states struggled to comply pinch nan national requirements. However, each different states person reached an statement pinch nan national department.

Legislature and management astatine odds

Commissioner Bishop maintained nan authorities did nary incorrect successful a May letter to Schott, but offered national officials $327,015, an magnitude little than 2% of what nan feds opportunity each districts are owed. That connection was not accepted; Schott said nan national authorities whitethorn not waive nan equity requirement.

The Legislature included $11.89 million in the operating budget for this fiscal twelvemonth for nan authorities to travel into compliance pinch nan national government’s assistance requirements and retrieve its bully opinionated for nan 2022 fiscal year. The fund magnitude equals nan full 2022 backing for Kenai Peninsula and Anchorage schools cited by nan national government.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed it.

Schott’s missive pointed to that action arsenic portion of nan logic for his determination to withhold funding.

Sen. Löki Tobin, D-Anchorage, is chair of nan Senate Education Committee and has pushed for nan authorities to comply pinch national guidelines. She said that it is yet students who suffer if nan authorities does not get reimbursed for nan $17.5 million.

“It’s not imaginary money, it’s existent money that has already been spent to thief move america done and walk nan pandemic,” she said. “And location will beryllium fund gaps and holes that request to beryllium filled, or, arsenic we’ve seen complete nan past fewer years, programme closures, little educators successful nan classroom, higher people sizes.”

She criticized nan Department of Education and Early Development for not updating lawmakers connected nan issue. “The connection that we received is that until nan rumor is settled, nan section will not beryllium providing further information. We’ve chiefly been moving pinch nan U.S. Department of Education to person information,” she said.

Tobin said she is looking for guidance from DEED, but that she anticipates it will beryllium an rumor nan Legislature will person to return up successful nan adjacent convention successful January.

Letters from nan national authorities to nan authorities opportunity nan $11.89 cardinal whitethorn not beryllium obligated by nan state, which intends nan authorities whitethorn not participate into an statement to walk them. Letters from nan national authorities show that nan authorities has not yet spent $64 cardinal successful national assistance money, from which that sum would beryllium withheld.

What’s next

Letters from nan national government indicate that nan authorities was unsuccessful successful an appeal of nan June determination to withhold $11.89 million. The national authorities will assistance nan withholding if nan authorities comes into compliance by paying nan Anchorage and Kenai Peninsula Borough School Districts nan $11.89 million.

The authorities whitethorn entreaty nan national government’s astir caller determination to withhold nan further $5.56 cardinal by Oct. 15. The national authorities will assistance nan withholding if nan authorities comes into compliance by paying nan schoolhouse districts nan $5.56 million.

It looks arsenic though nan authorities will either suffer $17.5 cardinal successful acquisition dollars aliases administer that money to definite districts arsenic nan national authorities has directed — if its appeals are unsuccessful.