Rep. Crawford Calls for Special Education Study

State Rep. James Crawford, who represents Killingworth, Clinton and Westbrook, has called for a full review of current state special education mandates to cities and towns. The study, outlined in HB 6103 and supported by Crawford, directs the Commissioner of Education to conduct a comprehensive review of state-mandated special education requirements and the cost to municipalities. 

“Small municipal school districts in particular can have great difficulty absorbing special education costs. It is my hope that this study will be the first step in recognizing the state's obligation for more special education funds,” said Crawford.  “This is too critical an issue to force local boards of education to budget for. The responsibility for educating our children belongs to everyone and not just any one particular town.”

The report will identify each state-mandated special education requirement that exceeds the minimum required under federal law and the cost to comply with those mandates, among other things.

The bill won unanimous House passage and is headed to the State Senate for their consideration.