CT News Junkie

Democratic leaders of both the House and Senate announced Wednesday morning that they would seek to boost special education funding by at least $40 million during the current fiscal year. “We all know that special education presents a challenge in equity for many towns, whether they be large or small, rich or poor, because we know that sometimes an expensive placement in a very complicated case can all of a sudden be the responsibility of a community that had not planned for it previously,” said Senate President Martin Looney, D-New Haven. “We know that the special education services are critical for students in order to get their footing and to be in a position to thrive. We know that all communities are challenged by this.” The additional funds would be allocated through the Excess Cost Grant Program, which covers per-pupil expenses above 4.5 times the average to educate certain special education students in the state – a total of about 4,300 youngsters out of the 91,847 special needs students in Connecticut.