Please urge budget conferees to eliminate language from the introduced budget that would cap state reimbursements to local governments for CSA special education private day educational services.
ACTION REQUIRED: Contact Budget Conferees today to maintain the CSA state-local partnership and eliminate the proposed cap on state reimbursements.
BACKGROUND
- Language in the introduced budget would stipulate that the rate of state reimbursement to localities for private day educational services for services provided on or after July 1, 2025, may not increase more than 2.5 percent over the rates for such services provided the previous year.
- If a provider’s rate increased beyond 2.5 percent over the previous year’s rate, and no alternative placement was available or suitable, the locality would be left to cover both the state and local shares of costs in excess of that cap.
- VACo and VML have suggested alternative language that would direct a focused review of the current mechanisms by which the state supports school systems in serving children with high-level needs, in order to build on the recommendations of a recent workgroup on this topic. Providing additional support to local public schools was an area of consensus in a 2021-2022 workgroup on CSA, but further work needed to be done to determine the best mechanism to provide that support.
KEY POINTS
- The cap proposed in the introduced budget is intended to control rising costs for the CSA program, but its effect will be to shift those costs to local governments, which are already struggling with cost increases under their existing local share.
- Local CSA programs cannot change placement decisions made in an Individualized Education Plan developed by a school division’s IEP team. Although in theory, localities can negotiate rates when contracting with providers, in some localities, placement options are limited and thus localities’ ability to bargain is limited as well.
- The CSA program, begun in the early 1990s, is a shared state and local responsibility. Capping the state’s commitment to CSA would constitute a major departure from the foundation of this program by shifting part of the state’s funding responsibility onto local governments.
- VACo strongly encourages budget conferees to eliminate the proposed cap and preserve the state/local partnership at the heart of CSA.
KEY CONTACTS
- Budget Conferees: Senator Lucas, Senator Locke, Senator Deeds, Senator McDougle, Senator Pillion, Delegate Torian, Delegate Sickles, Delegate Bulova, Delegate Carr, Delegate Austin, and Delegate Bloxom.
VACo Contact: Katie Boyle