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BILL: SB 338 TITLE: Primary and Secondary Education - Extended School Year Innovation Grant DATE: February 22, 2023 POSITION: Support COMMITTEE: Education, Energy, and the Environment / Budget and Taxation CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four local school superintendents, supports Senate Bill 338. This bill establishes an Extended School Year Innovation Grant program administered by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). Grants are intended to fund development and implementation of an extended school year scheduling model in public primary and secondary schools in the State. A participating school must use grant funds to support the additional personnel and operational expenses associated with implementing an extended school year scheduling model. MSDE must prioritize awarding grants to primary schools and schools with documented learning loss. To the extent practicable, each year MSDE must award a grant to at least one rural, one suburban, and one urban school. For each fiscal year through fiscal 2035, the Governor must include $25.0 million in the annual budget bill for the program. A participating school must, every second year of implementation, report specified information to the Governor, MSDE, and the General Assembly. The Covid-19 pandemic created many challenges in the delivery of public education and highlighted the need for innovation and evolution. The pandemic taught us that the traditional model of educating students is not the only way to educate students. We learned that some students can learn and excel in much more creative models and these models deserve more research and consideration. The Extended School Year Grant would allow school systems to implement another innovative concept in public education - a year-round school model. Research indicates that year-round schools have many benefits including lower stress levels for students due to frequent breaks throughout the year. The same has been found for reducing teacher stress, which in turn has shown an increase in the quality of their instruction. Year-round school can also help deter learning loss and give students and families year-round access to food service, academic support, and other wrap around services all year long. In overcrowded school systems, year-round schools with staggered sessions can help alleviate these physical constraints in school building and lessen the need for portable buildings. There are certainly downsides to consider with year-round schools; however, the careful planning and research expectations in this legislation will help school systems make the most informed decision on utilizing this innovative model. Maryland’s superintendents unanimously agree that implementing flexible scheduling models at the discretion of local systems provides additional creative options for the delivery of a free and appropriate public education. We embrace researching and piloting new modes of learning, and feel it is a welcome supplement to the high-quality education already provided in Maryland schools. We hope to have the opportunity to work collaboratively with MSDE and many other stakeholders, including teachers and students, to build the most effective and meaningful year-round school program for Maryland public school students. For these reasons, PSSAM supports Senate Bill 338 and urges a favorable report.

BILL: SB 551 TITLE: Education - Service Year Option Program - Establishment (Serving Every Region Through Vocational Exploration Act of 2023) DATE: February 22, 2023 POSITION: Support COMMITTEE: Education, Energy, and the Environment CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four local school superintendents, supports Senate Bill 551. Senate Bill 551 would establish a Service Year Option Program for eligible Maryland high school graduates. The program, set to be administered by the Department of Service and Civic Innovation, would extend the opportunity to recent graduates to work for a variety of community organizations, public programs, and private entities in Maryland. This program ensures that participants receive an appropriate salary, as well as other tangible benefits from collaboration with on-site supervisors such as college and career counseling, workforce training, and financial literacy education. PSSAM applauds the Governor’s initiative in introducing a state-wide Service Year Option Program for Maryland graduates. As Maryland’s top educational leaders, superintendents often witness the profound impact experiential learning opportunities can have on students. Service year programs have been shown to have a positive impact on students and produce a wide range of beneficial outcomes, including improved academic performance in higher education, increased civic engagement, and improved job prospects. Through the establishment of a Service Year Option Program in Maryland, young adults will have the opportunity to develop important career and life skills, such as communication, problem-solving, and leadership qualities. PSSAM is eager to support such a program with the potential to benefit the symbiotic relationship between Maryland students and communities. Through the opportunity to engage in service work, recent graduates would be able to make a positive impact in their communities, explore college and career opportunities, and contribute to the greater good. PSSAM believes that this program would help to build stronger, more vibrant communities throughout Maryland. For these reasons, PSSAM supports Senate Bill 551 and urges a favorable committee report.

BILL: SB 557 TITLE: Primary and Secondary Education – Breakfast and Lunch Programs – Universal Expansion DATE: February 22, 2023 POSITION: Support COMMITTEE: Budget and Taxation / Education, Energy, and the Environment CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four public school superintendents, supports Senate Bill 557. Senate Bill 557 is intended to reimburse local boards of education for the cost of providing free breakfast and lunch to all students attending public and participating private schools under the State’s Free Feeding Program. PSSAM strongly supports this legislation and the State’s generous participation. Based on our experiences during Covid in feeding students and families, we are extremely confident that all twenty-four local school systems will be able to implement such an ambitious program effectively and efficiently. The research on free meals for all students is vast and universally confirms the positive impact on student achievement, including academics and behavior. According to Madelein Levin and Jessie Hewins, the authors of Universal Free School Meals: Ensuring That All Children are Able to Learn, their findings include increased participation in meal programs, in part due to the removal of the stigma of “free lunch.” In addition, there is no room for error in identifying food-challenged students with the elimination of paper applications. Students in school meal programs are also more likely to eat healthier foods, including fruits, vegetables, and milk. In turn, these healthier eating habits positively impact lower childhood obesity. Removing the transaction of paying for meals also results in more time for students to eat. According to Levin and Hewins, families also benefit strongly from free meal programs as it reduces their financial burden of purchasing two meals a day for their children. Lastly, research shows that a consistently well-fed student is a better student, test-taker and participant in school. Participation in the free meal programs is also linked to fewer absences, increased attention span, decreased tardiness and behavior problems, and overall, an improved school environment. For these reasons, PSSAM supports Senate Bill 557 and urges a favorable report.

BILL: HB 546 TITLE: Education - Service Year Option Program - Establishment (Serving Every Region Through Vocational Exploration Act of 2023) DATE: February 21, 2023 POSITION: Support COMMITTEE: Appropriations CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four local school superintendents, supports House Bill 546. House Bill 546 would establish a Service Year Option Program for eligible Maryland high school graduates. The program, set to be administered by the Department of Service and Civic Innovation, would extend the opportunity to recent graduates to work for a variety of community organizations, public programs, and private entities in Maryland. This program ensures that participants receive an appropriate salary, as well as other tangible benefits from collaboration with on-site supervisors such as college and career counseling, workforce training, and financial literacy education. PSSAM applauds the Governor’s initiative in introducing a state-wide Service Year Option Program for Maryland graduates. As Maryland’s top educational leaders, superintendents often witness the profound impact experiential learning opportunities can have on students. Service year programs have been shown to have a positive impact on students and produce a wide range of beneficial outcomes, including improved academic performance in higher education, increased civic engagement, and improved job prospects. Through the establishment of a Service Year Option Program in Maryland, young adults will have the opportunity to develop important career and life skills, such as communication, problem-solving, and leadership qualities. PSSAM is eager to support such a program with the potential to benefit the symbiotic relationship between Maryland students and communities. Through the opportunity to engage in service work, recent graduates would be able to make a positive impact in their communities, explore college and career opportunities, and contribute to the greater good. PSSAM believes that this program would help to build stronger, more vibrant communities throughout Maryland. For these reasons, PSSAM supports House Bill 546 and urges a favorable committee report.

BILL: SB 367 TITLE: Public Employee Relations Act DATE: February 16, 2023 POSITION: Oppose COMMITTEE: Finance / Education, Energy, and the Environment CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twentyfour local school superintendents, opposes Senate Bill 367. This legislation consolidates and alters certain laws governing collective bargaining for certain public employees, including laws related to the establishment of bargaining units, elections and certification of exclusive representatives, employee and employer rights, unfair labor practices, strikes, and lockouts. The bill establishes the Public Employee Relations Board to oversee collective bargaining activities for certain public employees. PSSAM strongly opposes the following provisions of the bill: (1) adding class size and school calendar issues as permissible collective bargaining topics; (2) replacing the use of mediation with arbitration throughout the bill; and, (3) the elimination of the Public School Labor Relations Board (PSLRB) by consolidating it with the State Labor Relations Board, and the State Higher Education Labor Relations Board into a new Public Employee Relations Board. The bill significantly alters the longstanding collective bargaining process and dispute resolution by eliminating the PSLRB. This Board has expertise in public school collective bargaining issues, which could be minimized in a broader Public Employee Relations Board. The inclusion of class size and calendar issues as permissible collective bargaining topics is also of great concern. PSSAM’s concerns regarding the issue of class size are well documented in our attached opposition testimony for HB 85 (Collective Bargaining - Certified Employees - Class Size), which makes bargaining class size a permissible subject. There are many unintended consequences in allowing for negotiations to include class size. Financial and operational concerns top those concerns, especially the potential outcome of needing more teachers to satisfy bargained class sizes. This legislation would also significantly complicate and confuse our implementation of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future. The Blueprint is based on the concepts of equity and adequacy. This legislation would result in 24 different agreements that could create new inequities among systems based on the strength (or weakness) of either bargaining unit. Second, the Kirwan Commission considered and rejected mandating smaller class sizes. There was no conclusive research that smaller classes were responsible for student success; they found small classes were not a characteristic of successful schools around the world. Third, the Blueprint calls for increases in teacher salaries and more planning time (60% teaching and 40% planning), which will require additional staff. School systems are already strategizing and contemplating this need in the context of the national teacher shortage. Placing a cap on class sizes or allowing this to be a topic of negotiations would limit a system's ability to allocate resources to high need schools. Local boards and superintendents need the flexibility to invest in the students and families who need us the most. Lastly, the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future already requires wholesale revisions to the local systems’ collective bargaining agreements through the establishment of the career ladder. The Public School Labor Relations Board (PSLRB) has been hearing and resolving disputes between employees and their unions, and unions and school systems since 2010. The PSLRB is composed of members appointed by our organization, (PSSAM), the Maryland Association of Boards of Education (MABE), the teachers’ associations, and the Governor. This membership structure allows for expertise in school system governance, administration, employee contract negotiations, and dispute resolution, all of which would be lost by consolidating the PSLRB into the new Board. Finally, replacing mediation with arbitration would make an already complex and time-sensitive process more contentious and dissuade parties from coming to the bargaining table willing to compromise for the good of our teachers and students. For these reasons, PSSAM opposes Senate Bill 367 and urges an unfavorable report.

BILL: HB 448 TITLE: Nonpublic Education - Special Education Placements - Renaming and Teacher Salaries (Teacher Pay Parity Act) DATE: February 15, 2023 POSITION: Oppose COMMITTEE: Ways and Means / Appropriations CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM This bill requires a nonpublic educational program for students with disabilities to provide its teachers a salary that is equivalent to public school teachers of similar training and experience in the same county. If the costs to do so are not met by the existing State and local cost sharing mechanism in current law for nonpublic placements, such additional funding is to be paid for by the State and the local school system in the same proportion as provided by that mechanism. Funding for other components of a nonpublic educational program may not be reduced to provide for required nonpublic teacher salary increases. The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), opposes HB 448. The state’s twenty-four local school systems are working hard to implement the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future legislation, which includes a significant increase in teacher compensation to bring the teaching profession on par with professions that require similar education standards. These provisions include a 10% increase in salaries by FY ’24 over FY ’19 to close the gap of average teacher salaries in peer states. The Blueprint also calls for a $60,000 starting salary for all teachers by FY ’27. These are ambitious goals and each system is working with fidelity to meet these requirements. These provisions are already putting pressure on local systems to provide equal increases to personnel that are not specifically identified in the Blueprint, yet are integral staff in our systems, including psychologists, social workers, reading specialists, and more. This bill would add an unfunded mandate for local school systems to pay for costs they have no control over. We recognize that the vast majority of students at these nonpublic schools are special education students that could not be accommodated in their zoned school. However, the legislation would hold LEAs responsible for ensuring salary parity between public and private school teacher salaries without any local control over these schools; teachers in nonpublic placements are not part of the bargaining process. We appreciate and support our nonpublic education providers, but as last year’s fiscal note indicates, this bill creates a potential decrease in public school funding since school districts are responsible for paying a percentage of the tuition of these nonpublic placements. For the reasons stated above, PSSAM opposes HB 448 and requests an unfavorable committee report.

BILL: HB 461 TITLE: Education - Sexual Abuse and Assault Awareness and Prevention Program - Human and Sex Trafficking DATE: February 15, 2023 POSITION: Oppose COMMITTEE: Ways and Means CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four Maryland local school superintendents, opposes House Bill 461. House Bill 461 requires the Maryland State Board of Education (MSDE) to develop an age-appropriate education program modeling awareness and prevention of sexual abuse and assault for use in public schools and certain nonpublic schools. The program would be required to include material promoting the awareness and prevention of human and sex trafficking geared towards students in grades six through eight. Each local board of education would be required to incorporate this education program into already existing health curriculum, as well as ensure that instruction of these topics would be provided by teachers trained in the instruction of sexual assault prevention and awareness. PSSAM has a longstanding policy of opposing efforts by the General Assembly to codify curriculum standards, assessments, or graduation requirements. Local superintendents strongly believe that the role of curriculum development and implementation belongs solely to local boards of education in conjunction with MSDE. Rest assured, PSSAM’s opposition to this bill does not rest on an evaluation of the merits of teaching any specified subject matter, but rather opposition to statutorily mandating revisions to content standards and curriculum. The Maryland General Assembly, in creating the Maryland State Board of Education and local boards of education, has delegated to them the responsibility of delivering a high-quality statewide system of public education through State standards and accountability measures, as well as locally governed and administered curriculum. The State Board establishes State content frameworks, state assessment standards, and minimum state graduation requirements, while each local board and school system implement locally-developed curriculum to ensure that the state content frameworks are followed, student performance standards are met, and students are prepared to meet graduation requirements. In the context of educational programming proposed by House Bill 461, PSSAM emphasizes that many local school systems already incorporate age-appropriate materials on topics such as sexual abuse and sex trafficking prevention into comprehensive health education curriculum. Under current law, each local school system must provide a comprehensive health education program for all students from prekindergarten through grade eight, as well as offer an education program in grades 9 through 12 that enables students to meet graduation requirements. Superintendents are committed to providing students with a comprehensive, well-rounded health education through curriculum that is implemented after proper stakeholder input is received and review processes are completed in each individual system. However, seeing as though this bill would require all local systems to expend additional funds in curriculum and assessment creation that are not provided under the bill’s current language, this bill serves as an unfunded mandate for all twenty-four local systems. Again, PSSAM’s opposition to this bill does not rest on the merits of instruction pertaining to the sexual abuse, assault awareness, and sex trafficking prevention. Rather, it rests on the implications of curricular mandates on local school systems. House Bill 461, alongside similar bills which seek to interject or extract piecemeal segments of the curriculum, only serve to weaken the effectiveness of the overall educational curriculum. For these reasons, PSSAM opposes House Bill 461 and urges an unfavorable committee report.

BILL: HB 359 TITLE: Education – Interscholastic and Intramural Junior Varsity and Varsity Teams and Sports – Designation Based on Sex (Save Women’s Sports Act) DATE: February 15, 2023 POSITION: Oppose COMMITTEE: Ways and Means CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four local school superintendents, opposes House Bill 359. House Bill 359 would require certain interscholastic and intramural junior varsity and varsity athletic teams to be expressly designated based on biological sex. Additionally, this bill would prohibit certain entities from taking certain adverse actions against a school or county board of education for maintaining separate interscholastic and intramural junior varsity and varsity athletic teams and sports for students of the female sex. The bill also stipulates that certain individuals have the right to bring a civil action under certain circumstances. Maryland’s superintendents raise serious concerns about the mandated, statewide approach to participation in interscholastic sports taken by this bill. Instead, PSSAM favors the maintenance of locally controlled systems of interscholastic athletics governed by the guidance of Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) and regulations adopted by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). Since 1991, interscholastic sports in Maryland have operated in accordance with the “Master Agreement Outlining the Interscholastic Structure for Public Schools in Maryland,” which establishes the responsibilities of MPSSAA, MSDE, and local school systems. Local superintendents believe that this system of regulation and oversight is working well. The MPSSAA Guidance for Participation of Transgender Youth in Interscholastic Athletics states that its purpose is to “designate a set of criteria in which student-athletes are able to compete on a level playing field in a safe, competitive and friendly environment, free of discrimination. At the center of educational programming is the value placed in providing equal opportunity for all students.” The Guidance further provides that “each school system should develop and apply criteria for students to participate in interscholastic athletic teams consistent with their gender identity.” This guidance includes several principles and criteria for local school systems to use in determining eligibility of transgender students in interscholastic sports. These include attention to preserving the integrity of women's sports, as well as policies that are fair in light of the variation among individuals in strength, size, musculature, and ability. Through these means, the guidance reflects Maryland’s high priority on establishing and maintaining an interscholastic athletic system that assures that sports activities contribute to the entire educational program for all students choosing to participate. Additionally, PSSAM would like to highlight the potential of this legislation to create liability for discriminatory practices under a new statewide system of criteria for student participation in women’s sports based solely on sex assigned at birth. Other state legislatures have established that enforcing the standard of biological sex would likely require subjecting youth to invasive mandates in order to ensure eligibility, which could be considered sex discrimination as defined by the Supreme Court case of Bostock v. Clayton County, in which the Court asserted that anti-transgender discrimination violated Title VII’s prohibition against sex discrimination. For these reasons, PSSAM opposes House Bill 359 and kindly requests an unfavorable report.

BILL: HB 82 TITLE: Maryland Medical Assistance and Children's Health Insurance Programs - School-Based Behavioral Health Services - Reimbursement DATE: February 14, 2023 POSITION: Support with Amendments COMMITTEE: Health and Government Operations CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four local school superintendents, supports House Bill 82 with amendments. This bill requires the Maryland Department of Health to apply to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for a State Plan amendment that authorizes the State to seek reimbursement for medically necessary school-based behavioral health provided to all individuals enrolled in the program, or the Maryland Children's Health Program, without regard to whether the services are provided under an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or Individualized Family Service Plan. The bill specifies that certain accredited mental health providers working in a school-based setting within their scope of practice may seek the maximum reimbursement for services under federal law. PSSAM applauds the sponsor’s initiative in sponsoring this legislation. For years, the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) has been asked by stakeholders to seek this State amendment without success. We strongly support this legislation and ask the committee to consider two amendments; (1) extend the same request to the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare for somatic health services, which would create a singular process for both treatment needs; and, (2) be less prescriptive in the bill and allow the Department to work with stakeholders before making the final request to the Centers. Unfortunately, adults and students alike are suffering from symptoms closely associated with the lack of mental and behavioral health treatment. Many of these cases were either spurred by or worsened due to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the return to school, teachers and administrators are witnessing higher than ever levels of depression and anxiety. In school, this trauma manifests itself within students by cases of classroom disruption, retreat from academic work, and absenteeism. All local school systems in Maryland used part of their federal Covid funds to bring additional mental health support to students, including in-person appointments and telehealth when students could not be in school. As the federal money slows to a halt in 2024, we pivot to the question of sustainability of these efforts, especially in regards to how to afford the continued staffing of these support programs. The Blueprint will provide $125 million to somatic and behavioral health supports, including payments to community providers, but Medicaid is a natural and appropriate option to keep these supportive systems in place. In fact, sixteen states have already implemented Medicaid reimbursement for these services, with another five in the process of requesting the needed amendment. These sixteen states have expanded their programs to cover student populations beyond those with IEPs, similar to the allowances provided by this bill. Some state legislatures have compelled this practice via legislation, while others have gone through the administrative procedural process with their state health departments. This bill gives the Maryland Department of Health the support they need to seek these Medicaid reimbursements. The federal government laid the foundation to support these efforts in 2014 through the reversion of the “free care rule.” This allowed schools to seek some health services, including mental health counselors, for all students enrolled in Medicaid, not just those with IEPs. According to estimates by Georgetown University’s Center for Children and Families, in 2019 about 36% of school-aged children were enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP); it is likely that that number is higher today due to the enrollment of more than 50% of all children in the US who were included in Medicaid or CHIP as of January 2022. In Maryland, we have witnessed this increase in the enrollment of our Compensatory Aid student population, which saw an increase of $390 million for FY ‘24. This increase was a result of direct certification of students using Medicaid data, whereas past protocol was to collect family forms only. The federal government’s reception to these efforts appear to be favorable based on a fact sheet provided with President Biden’s 2022 State of the Union address. The document discussed the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) efforts to “make it easier for school-based mental health professionals to seek reimbursement from Medicaid.” Additionally, in early March of last year, President Biden announced that he had asked the U.S. Education Department to work with HHS in developing guidance that can help schools offer more mental health support. “And this is going to include enabling schools to use Medicaid funds to deliver those important services.” The Administration’s FY ‘23 budget also included up to $1 billion for more school-based mental health professionals. For these reasons, PSSAM supports House Bill 82 with the amendments described above, and requests a favorable report.

BILL: SB 206 TITLE: Education - Collective Bargaining - Certificated Employees - Class Size DATE: February 9, 2023 POSITION: Oppose COMMITTEE: Finance CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four Maryland local school superintendents, opposes Senate Bill 206. Senate Bill 206 aims to add the complex and costly topic of class size to the permissible topics that may be included in collective bargaining agreements. The agreements are negotiated annually through a highly regulated process and with an established dispute resolution process. Adding class size to the permissible negotiating topics would introduce an unanticipated complicating factor in the implementation of the Blueprint for Maryland’s future. The Blueprint is based on equity and adequacy; this legislation could result in 24 different agreements could actually create regarding nor the current process for resolving teachers’ contract disputes are aligned with adding class size to the types of matters w The quasi-judicial body created by the legislature to resolve collective bargaining disputes would be ill-equipped to resolve disputes on the complex topic of class size. Because none of the current bargaining agreements contain provisions on class size, the body responsible for hearing and deciding on cases in dispute, the Public School Labor Relations Board (PSLRB), would have no experience in this area. Foremost among the challenges would be the timing of decision-making relative to the end of one fiscal year, and contract term, and the impending July 1 day for the beginning of the new year. The annual negotiations cycle is already contentious. Adding class size to the scope of bargaining would only make an already complex and time-sensitive process more likely to bog down in irreconcilable disputes. It is reasonably foreseeable that the PSLRB would be unable to make final decisions in a timely manner on contract disputes on the topic of class size. Class size disputes will, unavoidably, involve school facilities issues not contemplated when bargaining laws and procedures were adopted. This is because class size is inherently a question of physical space. MABE opposes class size a topic of bargaining because reducing class size is so closely tied to the planning, timing and funding of school construction projects. As desirable as smaller class sizes may be to both the school system and teachers, state and local investments in expanding school facilities to provide more space are completely outside the control of the parties negotiating at the bargaining table. For these reasons, PSSAM respectfully opposes Senate Bill 206 and urges an unfavorable report.

BILL: SB 311 TITLE: Nonpublic Education - Special Education Placements - Renaming and Teacher Salaries (Teacher Pay Parity Act) DATE: February 8, 2023 POSITION: Oppose COMMITTEE: Budget and Taxation CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), opposes SB 311. This bill requires a nonpublic educational program for students with disabilities to provide its teachers a salary that is equivalent to public school teachers of similar training and experience in the same county. If the costs to do so are not met by the existing State and local cost sharing mechanism in current law for nonpublic placements, such additional funding is to be paid for by the State and the local school system in the same proportion as provided by that mechanism. Funding for other components of a nonpublic educational program may not be reduced to provide for required nonpublic teacher salary increases. The state’s twenty-four local school systems are working hard to implement the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future legislation, which includes a significant increase in teacher compensation to bring the teaching profession on par with professions that require similar education standards. These provisions include a 10% increase in salaries by FY ’24 over FY ’19 to close the gap of average teacher salaries in peer states. The Blueprint also calls for a $60,000 starting salary for all teachers by FY ’27. These are ambitious goals and each system is working with fidelity to meet these requirements. These provisions are already putting pressure on local systems to provide equal increases to personnel that are not specifically identified in the Blueprint, yet are integral staff in our systems, including psychologists, social workers, reading specialists, and more. This bill would add an unfunded mandate for local school systems to pay for costs they have no control over. We recognize that the vast majority of students at these nonpublic schools are special education students that could not be accommodated in their zoned school. However, the legislation would hold LEAs responsible for ensuring salary parity between public and private school teacher salaries without any local control over these schools; teachers in nonpublic placements are not part of the bargaining process. We appreciate and support our nonpublic education providers, but as last year’s fiscal note indicates, this bill creates a potential decrease in public school funding since school districts are responsible for paying a percentage of the tuition of these nonpublic placements. For the reasons stated above, PSSAM opposes SB 311 and requests an unfavorable committee report.

BILL: HB 243 TITLE: Baltimore City Young Readers Program - Expansion and Alterations (Young Readers Program Expansion Act of 2023) DATE: February 8, 2023 POSITION: Support COMMITTEE: Ways and Means CONTACT: Mary Pat Fannon, Executive Director, PSSAM The Public School Superintendents’ Association of Maryland (PSSAM), on behalf of all twenty-four local school superintendents, supports House Bill 243. This bill renames and expands the Baltimore City Young Readers Program to the Statewide Young Readers Program in the Maryland State Library Agency. The bill also increases the mandated appropriation for this new statewide initiative to $500,000, previously $250,000. The Maryland Governor's Young Readers Program is an affiliate of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library and is a book gifting program that mails free, high-quality books to children, no matter their family's income. The program delivers a free book every month to any Baltimore family with children from infancy through age four. It’s a great way to introduce very young kids to the joys of reading and storytelling. Baltimore City’s program has reached more than 4,400 families through a variety of service organizations and city and state agencies. We look forward to the statewide expansion of this innovative and effective early reading program. For these reasons, PSSAM supports House Bill 243 and requests a favorable report.