2026 -- S 2837

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LC004461

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

FORMALLY REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY

EDUCATION TO IMPLEMENT ALL PROVISIONS OF THE STATE FUNDING FORMULA

FOR EDUCATION

     Introduced By: Senators Pearson, Mack, Acosta, Gallo, Tikoian, Lauria, Kallman, Euer,
and Zurier

     Date Introduced: March 04, 2026

     Referred To: Senate Finance

     WHEREAS, Pursuant to Article XII, Section 1 of the Constitution of the State of Rhode

Island, it is the duty of the General Assembly to promote public schools, and adopt all means

necessary and proper to secure the advantages and opportunities of education; and

     WHEREAS, Pursuant to Article XII, Section 4 of the Constitution of the State of Rhode

Island, the General Assembly is charged with making "all necessary provisions by law for

carrying this article into effect" in order to promote public education; and

     WHEREAS, Through statutory enactments, the General Assembly has established the

state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the Council on Elementary and

Secondary Education, and the Board of Education, to implement statutory directives and

mandates to oversee public education in Rhode Island at the Kindergarten through grade twelve

(K-12) levels; and

     WHEREAS, The General Assembly recognizes that the Department of Elementary and

Secondary Education (hereinafter, the "Department") must address many challenges and execute

many tasks and directives in furtherance of its educational mission; and

     WHEREAS, The General Assembly has concern that there remains a significant gap

between statutory directives within the funding formula and the implementation of those

directives by the Department, which gap most impacts students with the greatest needs within our

schools; and

     WHEREAS, Some areas of the greatest concern are in the areas of and pertain to the

distribution of the permanent foundation education aid pursuant to §16-7.2-3;

     WHEREAS, Areas that need to be addressed and implemented by the Department

include, but are not limited to, multilingual learners funding based on actual costs and World

Class Instructional Design and Assessment or WIDA assessment levels, more accurate measures

of poverty indexes, and stronger communication to cities and towns regarding the amount and

calculation of their local share and the district state-share ratio pursuant to §§ 16-7.2-3 and 16-

7.2-4; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island hereby respectfully requests

the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to review the provisions of the State

funding formula, and ensure that all aspects of education aid required by statute are being carried

out to the full extent of the law; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Speaker of the House, the Governor, the

Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education, the Chair of the Council on Elementary

and Secondary Education, and the Chair of the Board of Education.

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LC004461

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