DPI announced this week that initial special education payments would reimburse schools for their special education costs at 35%. A hallway in La Follette High School in Madison. (Wisconsin Examiner photo)

Initial special education reimbursement payments to school districts this year will be about 35% of their costs — about 7 percentage points below the estimated rate approved in the state budget.

When the 2025-27 state budget was passed by the state Legislature and signed by Gov. Tony Evers in July, policymakers boasted that their investments would bring the special education reimbursement rate to a historic 42% in the first year of the budget and 45% in the second year. 

While school districts will still receive more aid for special education costs this year than in previous state budgets, it appears that the state funding set aside probably won’t be enough to reach the rate that was estimated when the budget was signed in July.

The Department of Public Instruction (DPI) announced in a bulletin on Monday that initial special education payments for November through March would reimburse schools 35% of their special education costs. While DPI uses a slightly lower rate to avoid overpayment and this is not the final reimbursement rate, Chris Bucher, DPI director of communications, said in an email that the agency has anticipated the rate falling below the estimate.

Special education reimbursement rates for public school districts can vary from the estimate because it is a sum certain allocation, meaning that payments come from a fixed pot of money.

During the budget process, public education advocates, DPI and Gov. Tony Evers called for that to change to a sum sufficient allocation, meaning that the amount of money provided by the state would be enough to meet the set reimbursement rate. Republican lawmakers rejected the request.

Bucher said having a lower reimbursement rate than what is estimated has been relatively typical with budgets, given that there is a fixed amount of state funding as well as a rising amount of unaided special education costs and a rising number of students with disabilities.

According to a Legislative Fiscal Bureau memo released Thursday, in 2024-25 the state had appropriated about $574 million to special education aid. When the 2023-25 state budget was passed, the appropriation was estimated to bring schools to a 33.3% rate in each year of the budget. In November 2024, DPI estimated a rate of 29.16%, and the final rate for that school year was 30.64%.

Based on cost increases in recent years, DPI projected costs would grow by 4% for its 2025-27 state budget request. It had estimated that aidable costs would be about $1.8 billion in 2025-26 and $1.9 billion in 2026-27. Those estimates were also used as Evers prepared his budget request and as the Legislature prepared the budget. 

According to the new memo, DPI now projects that aidable costs in 2024-25 increased by an estimated 9% — a rate more than twice the original projection when the 2025-27 budget was being drafted.

For the 2025-27 state budget, the DPI requested about $2 billion across the biennium to cover special education costs for school at a rate of 90% by the second year of the budget and to change the funding from “sum certain” to “sum sufficient.”

Gov. Tony Evers also requested the change from sum certain to sum sufficient, though he requested increasing it to a 60% rate by the second year. The Joint Committee on Finance denied those requests instead choosing to provide $207 million in the first year of the budget to cover an estimated 42% of costs and $297 million in the second year to cover costs at an estimated rate of 45%.

Advocates called attention to the reimbursement rate in statements this week, saying the funding system needs an overhaul.

Peggy Wirtz-Olsen, president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council, the state’s largest teachers union, blamed the rate on lawmakers, saying that they “turned their backs on our most vulnerable children, failing to deliver on promised special education funding and leaving our students without the supports they need to succeed in school.” 

“This shortfall will mean even more communities forced into holding school referendums in 2026 just to meet basic needs, causing uncertainty and hardship for students who deserve better from their elected leaders,” Wirtz-Olsen said in a statement. 

Wirtz-Olsen said lawmakers have been “caught lying about the scant resources they are providing.” 

“It’s time for these politicians to fix Wisconsin’s school funding formula and fulfill what the state Constitution requires,” she said. “Taxpayers have had enough of picking up the tab on our property taxes to make up for their refusal to fund schools. If they won’t take action for the students who most need help, educators and families will.” 

Beth Swedeen, executive director of the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities, called on the state to change the way it funds school districts. 

“It’s time to build a budget that is rooted in real costs and can provide budget certainty to schools and parents that the promises made by the legislature will translate into real dollars schools can use,” Swedeen said in a statement. “We should not be in this position cycle after cycle where students with disabilities and schools are undercut by accounting codes.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks to reporters while walking to his office on Nov. 10, 2025 on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Tom Brenner/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate approved a stopgap spending bill Monday that will end the longest government shutdown in American history once the measure becomes law later this week.

The 60-40 vote sends the updated funding package back to the House, where lawmakers in that chamber are expected sometime during the next few days to clear the legislation for President Donald Trump’s signature. 

Shortly before the vote, Trump said he plans to follow the agreements included in the revised measure, including the reinstatement of thousands of federal workers who received layoff notices during the shutdown. 

“I’ll abide by the deal,” Trump said. “The deal is very good.”  

Republicans, he added, will soon begin work on legislation to provide direct payments to Americans to help them afford the rising cost of health insurance, one of the core disagreements between the political parties that led to the shutdown. 

“We want a health care system where we pay the money to the people instead of the insurance companies,” Trump said from the Oval Office. “And I tell you, we are going to be working on that very hard over the next short period of time.”

House members told to head to D.C.

Earlier in the day, House Speaker Mike Johnson urged representatives to begin traveling back to Capitol Hill as soon as possible to ensure they arrive in time to vote on the bill to reopen the government, after the measure arrives from the Senate. 

The Louisiana Republican’s request came as airlines were forced to delay or cancel thousands of flights on the 41st day of the shutdown, a situation that could potentially impact a House vote on the stopgap spending bill if members don’t follow his advice. 

“The problem we have with air travel is that our air traffic controllers are overworked and unpaid. And many of them have called in sick,” Johnson said. “That’s a very stressful job and even more stressful, exponentially, when they’re having trouble providing for their families. And so air travel has been grinding to a halt in many places.”

Johnson then told his colleagues in the House, which hasn’t been in session since mid-September, that lawmakers from both political parties “need to begin right now returning to the Hill.”

Trump threatens air traffic controllers

Trump took a markedly different tone over the challenges air traffic controllers have faced during the shutdown in a social media post that he published several hours before he spoke to reporters about the deal to reopen government. 

“All Air Traffic Controllers must get back to work, NOW!!! Anyone who doesn’t will be substantially ‘docked,’” Trump wrote, without explaining what that would mean for workers who had to take time off since the shutdown began Oct. 1. 

Trump added that he would like to find a way to provide $10,000 bonuses to air traffic controllers who didn’t require any time off during the past six weeks.

“For those that did nothing but complain, and took time off, even though everyone knew they would be paid, IN FULL, shortly into the future, I am NOT HAPPY WITH YOU. You didn’t step up to help the U.S.A. against the FAKE DEMOCRAT ATTACK that was only meant to hurt our Country,” Trump wrote. “You will have a negative mark, at least in my mind, against your record. If you want to leave service in the near future, please do not hesitate to do so, with NO payment or severance of any kind!” 

An end in sight

The Senate-passed package will provide stopgap funding for much of the federal government through January 30, giving lawmakers a couple more months to work out agreement on nine of the dozen full-year spending bills.  

The package holds several other provisions, including the full-year appropriations bills for the Agriculture Department, the Legislative Branch, military construction projects and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. 

Seven Democrats and one independent broke ranks Sunday on a procedural vote that advanced the package, drawing condemnation from some House members and outside advocacy groups unhappy that no solution was arrived at to counter skyrocketing health insurance premium increases for people in the Affordable Care Act marketplace.

Republicans hold 53 seats in the Senate, where bipartisanship is required for major bills to move forward under the 60-vote legislative filibuster. 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said during a floor speech Monday he was “grateful that the end” of the stalemate was in sight. 

“We’re on the 41st day of this shutdown — nutrition benefits are in jeopardy; air travel is in an extremely precarious situation; our staffs and many, many other government workers have been working for nearly six weeks without pay,” Thune said. “I could spend an hour talking about all of the problems we’ve seen, which have snowballed the longer the shutdown has gone on. But all of us, Democrat and Republican, who voted for last night’s bill are well aware of the facts.”

Schumer bid for deal on health care costs fails

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., was far less celebratory after his bid to get Republicans to negotiate a deal on health care costs by forcing a shutdown failed. 

“The past few weeks have exposed with shocking clarity how warped Republican priorities truly are. While people’s health care costs have gone up, Republicans have come across as a party preoccupied with ballrooms, Argentina bailouts and private jets,” Schumer said. “Republicans’ breach of trust with the American people is deep and perhaps irreversible.” 

“And now that they have failed to do anything to prevent premiums from going up, the anger that Americans feel against Donald Trump and the Republicans is going to get worse,” Schumer added. “Republicans had their chance to fix this and they blew it. Americans will remember Republican intransigence every time they make a sky-high payment on health insurance.” 

Schumer was insistent throughout the shutdown that Democrats would only vote to advance a funding bill after lawmakers brokered a bipartisan deal to extend tax credits that are set to expire at the end of December for people who purchase their health insurance from the Affordable Care Act marketplace. 

That all changed on Sunday when Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin of Illinois, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Tim Kaine of Virginia, and Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen of Nevada voted to move the bill toward a final passage vote.

Maine independent Sen. Angus King of Maine, who caucuses with Democrats, also voted to advance the legislation.  

Jeffries still supports Schumer

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said during a press conference Monday afternoon that he still believes Schumer is effective and should keep his role in leadership, despite the outcome. 

“Leader Schumer and Senate Democrats over the last seven weeks have waged a valiant fight on behalf of the American people. And I’m not going to explain what a handful of Senate Democrats have decided to do. That’s their explanation to offer to the American people,” Jeffries said. 

“What we’re going to continue to do as House Democrats, partnered with our allies throughout America, is to wage the fight, to stay in the coliseum, to win victories in the arena on behalf of the American people notwithstanding whatever disappointments may arise,” he said. “That’s the reality of life, that’s certainly the reality of this place. But we’re in this fight for all the right reasons.” 

Speaker Johnson said earlier in the day that the “people’s government cannot be held hostage to further anyone’s political agenda. That was never right. And shutting down the government never produces anything.”

Johnson reiterated that GOP lawmakers are “open to finding solutions to reduce the oppressive costs of health care,” though he didn’t outline any plans to do that in the weeks and months ahead. 

People wait in line at a security checkpoint at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport  on Nov. 9, 2025 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The FAA has targeted 40 "high-volume" airports, including Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, for flight cuts amid the government shutdown. (Photo by Grant Baldwin/Getty Images)

This report has been updated.

WASHINGTON — Seven U.S. Senate Democrats and one independent joined Republicans on Sunday night in advancing legislation to reopen the government and temporarily keep it afloat until the end of January, after a record-breaking shutdown that began Oct. 1.

Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin of Illinois, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Tim Kaine of Virginia, and Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen of Nevada voted with most of the GOP to advance the stopgap measure through a 60-40 procedural vote. 

Sen. Angus King of Maine, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, also voted in support.  

Fetterman, King and Cortez Masto had already voted with Republicans on the previous 14 votes to reopen the government. Until Sunday, Republicans who control the chamber did not have the 60 votes needed to clear the filibuster threshold.

GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has consistently voted against the temporary funding measure, again cast a “no” vote.

The deal would also unlock full-year funding for a vital food aid program that serves 42 million Americans and bring back federal workers fired by President Donald Trump when the government was closed.

It does not include language addressing skyrocketing premiums for those enrolled in individual health insurance plans in the Affordable Care Act marketplace, a major sticking point for Democrats. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said late Sunday on the Senate floor that he commits to holding a separate vote on health insurance subsidies no later than the second week of December.

In a press conference following the vote, Rosen said Democrats have “an opportunity also to put Republicans on the record on the ACA.”

“Are they committed to doing this? Are they committed leaders who said, ‘You can come to the table on health care once the government was open’? And now he must follow through. If Republicans want to join us in lowering costs for working families, they have the perfect opportunity to show the American public,” Rosen said.

New text of a temporary stopgap funding deal released Sunday night proposes to keep the government open until Jan. 30. The bill would also reinstate all federal employees who were fired after the shutdown began, restoring their jobs with back pay, and prohibit any further layoffs until the temporary funding expires.

As part of the agreement, three fiscal year 2026 funding bills will ride along with the package, including the appropriations bills for agriculture programs, veterans benefits, military construction and Congress.

Divided Democrats

Several Senate Democrats left a lengthy closed-door meeting earlier Sunday night upset that the deal does not include anything to address rising health care premiums, on which the party has staked the 40-day shutdown. 

Subsidies for those who buy insurance on the Affordable Care Act insurance marketplace expire at the end of this year.

“So far as I’m concerned, health care isn’t included, so I’ll be a no,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.

Sens. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and Wisconsin’s Tammy Baldwin also issued statements following the caucus meeting declaring they would vote no. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also told reporters on his way out of the meeting that he’s opposed to the deal.

Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey said on social media he would oppose it. ”I’ve been clear that we need real action to stop the devastating health care cost increases that are hurting millions of families,” he said.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., issued a statement expressing support for the agreement, highlighting that Senate Republicans have promised a vote on extending the health care subsidies.

“This deal guarantees a vote to extend Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, which Republicans weren’t willing to do. Lawmakers know their constituents expect them to vote for it, and if they don’t, they could very well be replaced at the ballot box by someone who will,” Kaine said.

Government reopening will take time

The Sunday night vote does not mean the government will reopen right away.

The legislation must make its way through Senate procedural steps and then gain approval from the U.S. House, which hasn’t been in session since Sept. 19. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, attended the Washington Commanders football game with Trump Sunday night in Landover, Maryland.

Trump briefly spoke to reporters upon news of the deal after leaving the NFL game, telling them, “It looks like we’re getting very close to the shutdown ending.”

Nearly a million federal workers have missed paychecks during the shutdown, and food benefits for the poorest Americans stopped flowing at the beginning of November. 

Air travel has also become snarled as the shutdown has dragged on, and air traffic controllers are under pressure without pay. The Federal Aviation Administration began cutting flights Friday at 40 major airports across the U.S. The cuts are set to ramp up to a 10% decrease in air traffic.

SNAP funding

The deal includes provisions that Democrats say the Trump administration sought to shrink or cut altogether, including fresh fruit and vegetable subsidies for mothers with children and monthly food boxes for low-income seniors.

The legislation would direct $8.2 billion to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, otherwise known as WIC, a roughly $600 million increase over last year’s program amount.

During the shutdown, the administration used $150 million from a U.S. Department of Agriculture rainy day fund to keep the program going. The bill would replenish the contingency money.

The bill also fully funds the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, and children’s nutrition programs, including subsidized school breakfast and lunch, and the availability of food during summer school breaks.

Democrats on the Senate Committee on Appropriations say it included “key funding for SNAP and other critical nutrition programs as President Trump fights in court during the government shutdown to cut off benefits for 42 million Americans who rely on SNAP to feed their families,” according to a bill summary. 

The USDA directed states to begin releasing the November SNAP benefits onto recipients’ benefits debit cards after a Rhode Island federal district judge and circuit court ordered the Trump administration to do so last week. 

Trump appealed the order to the Supreme Court, which stayed the decision. A department memo Saturday told states that released the full benefits to take back a portion of them.

The bill would also direct money to the SNAP emergency contingency fund.

Hemp ban

Hemp farmers are sounding the alarm about a provision in the bill that they say would “effectively eliminate the legal hemp industry built under the 2018 farm bill,” according to a Sunday statement from the Hemp Industry and Farmers of America.

Lawmakers are “slamming the door on 325,000 American jobs and forcing consumers back to dangerous black markets,” the industry group’s executive director Brian Swensen said. 

Swensen also added: “The hemp industry has been ready and willing to work on responsible regulations – age restrictions, testing requirements, proper labeling — but instead of collaboration, the industry is getting a misguided prohibition through backdoor appropriations deals.” 

House trepidation

Several House Democrats, including a top appropriator, criticized the deal.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries blamed Republicans for the proposal Sunday night in a statement, saying House and Senate Democrats have “waged a valiant fight” for the last seven weeks.

“It now appears that Senate Republicans will send the House of Representatives a spending bill that fails to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits. As a result of the Republicans refusal to address the healthcare crisis that they have created, tens of millions of everyday Americans are going to see their costs skyrocket,” Jeffries said.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top House Democratic appropriator, said she did not agree to the release of the veterans and military construction bill as an attachment to the deal.

“Congress must invest in veterans, address the health care crisis that is raising costs on more than 20 million Americans, and prevent President Trump from not spending appropriated dollars in our communities,” DeLauro, D-Conn., said in a statement.

Rep. Angie Craig joined other House Democrats in slamming the Senate negotiations on social media.

“If people believe this is a ‘deal,’ I have a bridge to sell you. I’m not going to put 24 million Americans at risk of losing their health care. I’m a no,” said Craig, of Minnesota.

FRISCO, Texas — Federal and state special education policy expert Glenna Wright-Gallo delivered a transformative message Sunday at the Transporting Students with Disabilities and Special Needs (TSD) Conference about moving beyond mere compliance by creating meaningful educational experiences for students with disabilities, particularly through transportation services.

The general session underscored a fundamental message: transportation is not about moving students from one place to another, but about creating opportunities for learning, growth and inclusion.

Wright-Gallo, the former assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services during the Biden administration and currently vice president of policy for assistive technology company Everway, began by challenging the audience views on the traditional approach to compliance.

“Compliance for the sake of compliance isn’t effective,” she stated.

She illustrated this point by comparing compliance to speed limit signs — many motorists don’t naturally slow down simply because a sign exists. Instead, she urged student transportation professionals to view their work as a critical component of student learning and access. “No matter what happens, no matter what political party is in the majority, education is a bipartisan issue, and children don’t have time for adults to get it together, right?” she said as as the audience applauded.

The presentation dove into recent policy shifts, highlighting how federal guidance is evolving to view transportation as more than a logistical challenge. “Transportation is access,” she emphasized, explaining that recent joint guidance from the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Transportation now explicitly frames transportation as a civil rights issue directly linked to student attendance and academic success.

During interactive group discussions, attendees revealed significant challenges in interdepartmental communication. One participant shared an example of managing a student who has an autism spectrum disorder, describing how they created reasonable modifications like positioning the student behind the driver to manage specific behavioral challenges. Another transportation director discussed the complexities of coordinating with special education departments, noting frequent communication gaps and last-minute changes that impact transportation planning.

Technology emerged as a potential solution to these challenges. Wright-Gallo encouraged innovative approaches, with one participant sharing how they used AI to create monthly training modules that build upon each other.

“Using AI, I made a training for every month that builds upon the previous months. I present it to my coordinators when we have our monthly meetings, and then they take it out and give it to their drivers that work under them,” explained John Haas, transportation director for Onslow County Schools in North Carolina. “That way, my whole district is being trained on the same thing.”

The funding landscape presented another critical challenge. Wright-Gallo acknowledged the uncertainties at state and federal levels, with many states still struggling to pass budgets. She proposed creative solutions, including exploring alternative funding sources and developing more collaborative approaches between different educational departments.

A key moment came when Wright-Gallo challenged participants to think beyond traditional compliance metrics. “It doesn’t matter what decision we make if it doesn’t result in something different for a student,” she declared, urging participants to focus on meaningful outcomes rather than bureaucratic checklists.

The discussion around technology was particularly nuanced. While embracing innovation, Wright-Gallo also cautioned against wholesale technological adoption. “Whatever goes into a learning management system comes out of it,” she noted, emphasizing the importance of high-quality initial content and training.

Participants were particularly engaged when discussing strategies for inclusive training and professional development. One transportation director shared their approach of coordinating annual in-service training with the special education department, demonstrating the type of collaborative approach Wright-Gallo advocated.

She concluded her keynote with a powerful call to action: “Lead where you live. Don’t wait for someone to give you the title of leader. Do what’s right.” She challenged participants to identify one concrete action they could take in the next 30 days to improve transportation services for students with disabilities.

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Thursday afternoon, Wright-Gallo also presented a breakout session on transforming complex Department of Education guidelines in the form of “Dear Colleague” letters into practical, everyday applications.

She highlighted the intersection of key federal laws like the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504, demonstrating how these regulations directly impact transportation services. She shared compelling stories illustrating policy gaps, such as substitute school bus drivers incorrectly denying service animals or mishandling students with neurodivergent conditions.

Regarding service animals, allowed by Section 504 of the ADA, Wright-Gallo clarified that only dogs and miniature horses qualify, and that districts can only ask two specific questions when presented with the request for service: Is the animal is required due to disability rather than being an emotional support animal, and what specific tasks does it perform?

She stressed the importance of avoiding blanket policies that might inadvertently discriminate against students with disabilities.

Funding emerged as another critical theme, with Wright-Gallo revealing multiple potential funding streams for transportation services, including innovative uses of federal funds for training, hiring and supporting student needs. She encouraged transportation directors to explore creative funding approaches and build cross-departmental partnerships.

Assistive technology received significant attention, with Wright-Gallo defining it broadly—from low-tech picture boards to high-tech communication devices. “Assistive technology does not replace a teacher or driver, it enables participation and independence,” she explained, emphasizing that these tools must be accessible during transportation and all school activities.

The post Education Leader Challenges Transportation Professionals to Reimagine Compliance and Student Access appeared first on School Transportation News.

A Fleet Electrification Accelerator launched by Connecticut Green Bank earlier this year provides school districts with a free planning and deployment support program for local school bus fleets, with a focus on distressed municipalities.

The program is designed to help Connecticut school districts transition to electric school buses by offering technical, financial and operational guidance. It helps school districts overcome the various barriers to electrification such as EV adoption, infrastructure planning, vehicle procurement and cost analysis.

As of Tuesday, Preston Public Schools and the Connecticut Technical Education and Career System joined the Fleet Electrification Accelerator Fall Cohort. CTECS serves over 11,000 students across 17 technical high schools and one technical education center.

“The Green Bank is proud of the electric school bus investments we have made in 2025 through the Fleet Electrification Accelerator, which will help communities strive towards a cleaner future,” stated Bryan Garcia, president and CEO of the Connecticut Green Bank. “The participation of Preston Public Schools and CTECS reflects a growing commitment among Connecticut’s educational institutions to reduce emissions and deliver public health benefits through improved air quality while continuing to focus on the safe, reliable transportation of their students to and from school.”

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Through the program, Preston Public Schools and CTECS will receive everything from electric school bus basics, vehicle and charger recommendations, a road map, on site assessment, procurement timelines and funding and incentive opportunities.

“Preston Public Schools is one of approximately 10 school districts that owns and operates its fleet of school buses,” said Roy Seitsinger, Preston’s superintendent of schools. “The initial assessment shows the location of our transportation department to be the third best location statewide to provide the necessary power for electrifying our future fleet needs. We are proud to be one of the first school districts to partner with Connecticut Green Bank.”

Recruitment for the spring 2025 Fleet Electrification Accelerator is currently underway. The program is sponsored by CALSTART.

The post New Resource Helps Connecticut Districts Transition to Electric School Buses appeared first on School Transportation News.

The Trump Administration yanked more than $65 million in Title X funding from clinics nationwide in April, and some of that funding is still frozen, leaving clinics struggling to offer free or low-cost contraception and other family planning services. Some states are suing to get the funding back, but Idaho officials chose to forego it due to a conflict with state law. (Getty Images)

The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare quietly declined the entirety of its annual $1.5 million federal Title X funding, leaving patients statewide without free and low-cost contraception and reproductive health care services from a key family planning program. 

Though thousands of Idahoans relied on the health care provided through Title X for over 50 years, the state made no public announcements as the decision took effect in April, leading to the closure of 28 out of 43 — about 65% — Title X-funded family planning clinics in public health districts throughout the state, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. 

After turning down the Title X money entirely, Health and Welfare said there are no plans for the state to make up the difference by increasing the family planning budget. 

In one district, Eastern Idaho Public Health, spokesperson Brenna Christofferson said contraception services are no longer available at all, which has only been communicated to existing Title X patients. Sexually transmitted infection testing and treatment, and breast and cervical cancer screenings are still provided using different funding sources.

Many of the clinics closed in eastern Idaho, including more populated cities such as Twin Falls and Idaho Falls, and more rural areas such as Salmon, Rexburg and Rigby. Title X services also ended at clinics like Terry Reilly Health Services in one of southwestern Idaho’s most populous areas of Nampa and Caldwell. 

The decision to forego the funds came at the same time the Trump administration yanked more than $65 million in Title X funding from Planned Parenthood clinics and some independent reproductive health clinics across the country, much of which is still frozen, including for Idaho’s last remaining Planned Parenthood in Meridian. Spokesperson Nicole Erwin said Planned Parenthood continues to fundraise to help offset costs and keep family planning services affordable on a sliding scale.

Although Idaho’s move came at the same time national attention was focused on the frozen funds, it was a separate decision, according to Health and Welfare.

“The discontinuation of Title X funding … was not related to the federal administration’s Title X policy changes earlier this year,” said AJ McWhorter, spokesperson for the Health and Welfare Department. “The department made the decision to decline the funding to remain compliant with current Idaho laws concerning parental rights and counseling on pregnancy options.”

Nationally, seven out of 16 grantees have had their funding restored, while others have been waiting nearly seven months for resolution, said Clare Coleman, president and CEO of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association.

“For Idaho to walk away from the money doesn’t just disadvantage and imperil young people, it imperils all the people in the state,” she said. “It hurts women, it hurts men, and it hurts young people.”

Coleman’s organization sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services over the frozen funds, and the case is still pending. A coalition of 20 Democratic-led states sued federal government agencies in July to halt its actions related to several social safety net programs, including Title X. That case is paused while the government is shut down.

In 2023, U.S. Health and Human Services reported Title X provided care to nearly 3 million people nationwide, a 7% increase from the prior year. Under the program guidelines, people with family income levels at or below 100% of the federal poverty level can receive services free of charge, while those making up to 250% of the federal poverty level pay a discounted rate on a sliding scale.  

The program, established by Congress and signed by former Republican President Richard Nixon in 1970, is intended to prioritize low-income or uninsured people, including those who make too much to qualify for Medicaid, who may not otherwise have access to family planning and reproductive health services. Abortion services cannot be covered by Title X dollars.

Pregnancy options and parental consent 

The federal statute guiding the administration of Title X funds includes a section on adolescent services that says grantees cannot require the consent of parents or guardians before or after the minor has requested or received family planning services. Another section directs grantees to allow pregnant patients the opportunity to receive information and counseling regarding prenatal care and delivery, infant care, foster care, adoption and pregnancy termination. Idaho has a near-total abortion ban with few exceptions.

Idaho’s Legislature passed Senate Bill 1329 in 2024, requiring parental consent for “the furnishing of health care services” to a child, with the exception of lifesaving care. Idaho Capital Sun reported the law has also created difficulties for the state’s suicide hotline, because some minors need permission from a parent to receive certain services.

Coleman said the adolescent and pregnancy options requirements have long been part of Title X guidance, and it has not conflicted with state law because federal law should take precedence under the U.S. Constitution.

Idaho is one of at least two states that currently has no Title X funding, Coleman said, after Utah lost all of its Title X money when the Trump administration withheld funding from Planned Parenthood clinics, which were the only places offering those low-cost or free services. Planned Parenthood of Utah closed two of its centers — in Logan and St. George — in the wake of the decision to freeze funding. Logan is less than an hour away from eastern Idaho’s border.

Some states were temporarily left without Title X providers after the Trump administration’s actions in April, but the funding was restored at later dates for certain states, including Missouri and Mississippi. The federal health agency also restored funds in May for two states with abortion bans, Tennessee and Oklahoma, whose grants were revoked under Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration because of their refusal to include abortion among the options during pregnancy counseling. 

In a letter from HHS to Tennessee state officials providing notice of the award, the acting chief grants management officer wrote, “Tennessee is one of only two states to have lost funding for failure to comply with the Title X 2021 regulations requiring counseling and referral for abortion. The department is declining to enforce this provision against the state, and you may rely on this letter to that effect.” 

A total of 7,528 Title X clients were served across Idaho in 2024, McWhorter said. The 15 remaining family planning clinics are supported by other funds, and additional service sites may be added as funding becomes available. Those clinics are in two out of the state’s seven public health districts, which served about 1,400 people combined in 2024. 

The closures add another challenge in an already difficult landscape for sexual and reproductive health care in Idaho. A recent study found that 94 of 268 practicing OB-GYNs left Idaho between August 2022 and December 2024, and care is becoming harder to obtain, according to residents, who say wait times are longer and certain treatment is unavailable locally. 

Coleman said under Biden’s administration, when an entity lost Title X dollars for noncompliance or other reasons, there was an effort to reallocate the funding to another willing participant. Without that action, it would revert back to the U.S. Treasury, and the next opportunity for another Idaho entity to apply for Title X funding will be late 2026. 

Preventing unplanned pregnancies 

Amy Klingler, a clinician in rural eastern Idaho, told States Newsroom she was devastated by the closure of Eastern Idaho Public Health’s family planning clinic. She worked there in addition to another clinical job since 2006 and said there aren’t many other options for family planning care in that area of the state.

“Idahoans don’t trust doctors, but they trust their doctor,” Klingler said. “So when we see rural health care being eroded and doctors leaving Idaho or not coming to Idaho, I think that is really going to impact the health of people in our communities.”

The additional cuts to Planned Parenthood through Medicaid, along with overall Medicaid cuts that may force the closure of more rural hospitals and clinics, will force people to delay care until they are sicker and require more expensive medical care, Klingler said.

The minor consent for treatment bill had good intentions, she said, and in an ideal world, every child would feel comfortable talking to their family members about birth control. But she said she is confident there are young women who don’t get birth control because they don’t want to have that conversation with their parents. 

And with Idaho’s abortion ban, unplanned pregnancies either have to be carried to term or the person must go to another state where abortion is legal. It’s also a felony in Idaho for someone to take a minor to another state for an abortion without parental permission.

“Providing free birth control is really powerful if you’re trying to prevent unplanned pregnancies,” Klingler said.

On her last day at the family planning clinic in June, Klingler said the staffers cried together.

“We often ended the day by saying, ‘We did some really good work today,’” she said. “And to not be able to do that good work kind of hurts the heart.”

Travelers move through Salt Lake International Airport in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

This report has been updated.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate Tuesday failed for the 13th time to advance a stopgap spending bill that would fund the government until Nov. 21 and end the nearly one-month government shutdown.

Tuesday was also the day when air traffic controllers, who are working without pay, missed their first full paychecks. The FlightAware delays tracker reported 7,404 delays within, into or out of the United States on Monday and 161 cancellations within the U.S. A temporary ground stop was issued at Los Angeles International Airport on Sunday morning due to staffing issues.

In the nation’s capital, the 54-45 vote was nearly identical to the previous 12 votes, as Republicans and Democrats stuck to their positions. The legislation needed at least 60 votes to advance, under the Senate’s legislative filibuster. 

Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, both Democrats, and Maine independent Sen. Angus King voted with Republicans to advance the legislation. Kentucky GOP Sen. Rand Paul voted no.

Vance defends SNAP cutoff

Democrats are under increasing pressure to pass the House-passed GOP stopgap measure, with 42 million Americans at risk of losing food assistance for November, many federal workers beginning to miss their paychecks and one of the largest unions representing federal workers calling for an end to the government shutdown, now at day 28. 

Amid the government shutdown, the Trump administration has moved to lay off federal workers, and a federal judge is holding a Tuesday hearing to consider a preliminary injunction to block the mass Reductions in Force, or RIFs.

As President Donald Trump continues his overseas travel throughout Asia meeting with foreign leaders, Vice President JD Vance joined Senate Republicans during their Tuesday caucus lunch meeting. 

Vance defended USDA’s decision to not tap into its contingency fund provided by Congress to continue food assistance benefits amid a funding lapse.

“We’re exploring all options,” Vance said. 

Congress provided USDA with the multi-year contingency fund, which totals about $6 billion — short of the roughly $9 billion needed to cover a full month of SNAP benefits. USDA would have to reshuffle funds to provide November payments. 

“We are trying as much as possible to ensure that critical food benefits get paid,” Vance said. 

A coalition of Democratic state officials Tuesday sued the Trump administration and urged a federal judge to force the U.S. Department of Agriculture to release SNAP benefits for 42 million people.

Vance called on five Democrats to join Senate Republicans in approving a short-term funding bill.

“If the Democrats just opened up the government, then we wouldn’t have to play this game where … we’re trying to fit a square peg into a round hole with the budget,” Vance said. 

Democrats have continued to vote against the House’s GOP short-term spending bill to draw attention to and force negotiations on tax credits that will expire at the end of the year for people who buy their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act Marketplace. Republicans maintain the government must reopen before they begin any talks.

Votes possible on SNAP funding

Republicans are also weighing whether to pass a stand-alone bill by GOP Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley to approve funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. 

Ten Senate Republicans have joined to sponsor the bill, including Senate Appropriations Chairwoman Susan Collins of Maine. One Democratic senator also cosponsored the bill, Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that Democrats would also introduce their own separate bill to provide funding for not only SNAP, but for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, or WIC.

During a Tuesday press conference, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., did not seem receptive to scheduling a Senate vote on a stand-alone bill to address SNAP. 

“I mean, this piecemeal approach where you do one off here, one off there, to make it seem more politically palatable to somebody…that is just a wrong way to do this,” Thune said. 

Instead, he argued that Democrats should just support the stopgap spending bill. 

Another critical deadline is approaching. Active-duty military members will miss their paychecks by Friday if the government is still in a funding lapse. The Trump administration already reprogrammed $8 billion earlier this month from multi-year research funds from the Defense Department in order to pay the troops. 

However, Vance said the Trump administration expects to be able to pay troops this Friday, although the vice president didn’t detail where those funds would come from.

Before Tuesday morning’s vote, Thune said Democrats should listen to calls for an end to the shutdown from the American Federation of Government Employees, or AFGE, labor union, which typically aligns with Democrats. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, also cited the call from AFGE, telling Democrats “you have an off-ramp,” during a Tuesday press conference.

“The largest unions are saying, ‘Please do this,’” Johnson said. “You can claim that as cover and say that you had to do it.”

Last week, there were dueling bills from both parties related to paying federal workers amid the shutdown, but those efforts failed to meet the 60-vote threshold to move forward.

The end of the 2019 government shutdown, which lasted 35 days, was in part due to shortages of air traffic controllers that upended air travel across the country and forced lawmakers to strike a deal. 

Schumer critical of administration shutdown decisions

During a Tuesday press conference, Schumer slammed the Trump administration for refusing to tap into its contingency fund for SNAP.

“The money is there,” the New York Democrat said. “The hungry people, the hungry children, the hungry veterans, the hungry elderly, could be fed, but Trump’s using them as hostages.”

Of the 42 million people on SNAP, roughly 40% are children 17 and younger. 

He also criticized Trump for traveling abroad and for his administration’s priority to demolish the East Wing of the White House for a ballroom. 

“His number one priority is his ballroom,” Schumer said. “When people are suffering, what kind of president is this?” 

A produce cooler at Willy Street Co-op in Madison, Wisconsin. FoodShare funding from the federal government will stop Nov. 1 if the federal government shutdown continues. (Photo by Erik Gunn/Wisconsin Examiner)

Unless the shutdown ends by that date, Wisconsin’s FoodShare program, which serves more than 700,000 Wisconsin residents — about 12% of the state’s population — will run out of funds Nov. 1, Gov. Tony Evers said Tuesday. FoodShare is funded through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, previously known as Food Stamps.

Two Wisconsin Head Start early childhood education programs are at risk for not receiving their expected federal authorization that was to start Nov. 1, according to Jennie Mauer, executive director of the Wisconsin Head Start Association.

“Our social safety net is stretched,” Mauer said Tuesday. “This is just going to really short communities, and I think providers are bracing. We just don’t know the tidal wave that’s going to hit us, so everybody is really concerned.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture notified states earlier this month that the SNAP program would not have enough funds to pay full benefits to the program’s 42 million participants nationwide.

The department directed states to hold off on the transactions that move SNAP funds onto the electronic benefit cards that FoodShare members use to buy groceries.

FoodShare “may not be available at all next month if the federal government shutdown continues, leaving nearly 700,000 Wisconsinites without access to basic food and groceries,” the governor’s office said in a statement Tuesday.

“President Trump and Republicans in Congress must work across the aisle and end this shutdown now so Wisconsinites and Americans across our country have access to basic necessities like food and groceries that they need to survive,” Evers said.

Both the FoodShare and Medicaid programs refer to their participants as members. “FoodShare benefits are 100 percent funded by the federal government and the shutdown will need to end before members can begin getting benefits again,” the state Department of Health Services announced in the FoodShare news page Tuesday.

If FoodShare benefits stop in November, they won’t be lost, but they will be delayed, said Matt King, CEO of the Hunger Task Force in Milwaukee. When the shutdown ends, benefits will become available again, including those not paid during the shutdown.

The Hunger Task Force supplies food pantries throughout the greater Milwaukee area. If benefits stop, food pantry operators and suppliers expect to see a sharp increase in the need for their services.

“FoodShare is the first and most critical line of defense against hunger,” King said Tuesday. “The food pantry network across Wisconsin acts as a safety net to help people in an emergency. It’s not set up to be a sustainable source of food to meet all of their grocery needs.”

While helping people get access to food in an emergency, the food pantry network also works to connect people with “more sustainable and ongoing resources like the FoodShare program,” he said.

The impending pause on FoodShare funds will compound a need that has already increased by 35% across the state in the past year, King said. “The longer the government shutdown goes on, the more strain it will put onto the emergency food system.”

Mauer of the Head Start association said two of the state’s 39 Head Start programs were to receive authorization for their next round of funding starting Nov. 1, and with them the ability to draw on their federal grants for the next several months.

So far, the authorization hasn’t been received, Mauer said. In addition, however, if the authorization is issued but the shutdown remains in effect, “there’s no money” until a budget is enacted, she added. “They need money in the coffers for [Head Start agencies] to draw down.”

The issue will repeat for programs that must reauthorize by Dec. 1 and Jan. 1 if the shutdown continues.

The remaining Head Start programs are not believed to be in peril, Mauer said, because their grants have already been funded by the previous fiscal year’s appropriations.   

The Head Start program operated by the Sheboygan Human Rights Association is one of the two awaiting its Nov. 1 reauthorization and the new round of funding that would ordinarily begin then.

“At this point, we are unsure how we will be affected,” said Theresa Christen-Liebig, the executive director of the nonprofit. The agency is using “some state funding resources to continue services until mid-November,” Christen-Liebig told the Wisconsin Examiner in an email. The agency’s board will meet next week to consider its steps for the rest of November and beyond, she said.

“The uncertainty makes the situation stressful and hard on our staff and families,” Christen-Liebig said. “We are keeping everyone updated as we try to work things out and decisions are made to continue to provide services.”

Mission Telecom threw a lifeline to school bus Wi-Fi when the nonprofit broadband provider announced it is honoring the cost share of E-Rate for lines of service.

Last week’s announcement comes after the Federal Communications Commission last month retroactively ended school bus Wi-Fi and external hotspot eligibility under the federal discount program for school districts, libraries and health providers.

School districts nationwide had already applied to and started procuring equipment and services for a school bus Wi-Fi under the assumption they would be receiving anywhere between 20- and 90 percent discounts based the proportion of disadvantage students the district serves or if it’s a rural location. With school districts essentially holding the bag following the 2-1 FCC decision on Sept. 30, Mission Telecom is reselling access to the T-Mobile 5G network.

“Equipment’s already installed. Some of these bus Wi-Fi programs [have] been running for years, and [school districts] were counting on their E-Rate discounts in their budgets. And then, all of a sudden, they were told you’re not going to get those discounts,” commented Michael Flood, a school broadband consultant and owner of Alpine Frog, which advises Mission Telecom.

Mark Colwell, director of broadband operations for Mission Telecom, explained to School Transportation News in an email that the company holds seven wireless spectrum licenses in large U.S. cities and leases them to a subsidiary of T-Mobile. In exchange, he continued, Mission Telecom access T-Mobile’s 5G network and resells the lines of service to education, libraries and social-good organizations at affordable rates.

Also, a grantmaking organization, Mission Telecom’s nonprofit status allows it to provide the data service at no more than $20 per month.

“We do not rely on traditional benefactors or individual donors, our nonprofit model and partnerships allow us to reinvest every surplus dollar into other digital-equity initiatives, cost savings for our partners, and grant making programs,” he added. “Every connection we make helps expand affordable access, close the digital divide, and empower organizations to thrive in an increasingly connected world.”

Colwell said Mission Telecom is offering the unlimited 4G/5G wireless service
at the applicant school district’s post-discount share of case based on the approved E-Rate Form 471.

“Thus, we are matching the lines of service, not the equipment,” he noted.

Colwell provided the example of a school district that previously paid $30 per month for school bus Wi-Fi connectivity and received an 80 percent E-Rate discount. He said Mission Telecom will provide unlimited service for $6 per month through June 30, 2026.

He continued that the process for school districts is “fast and transparent with no red tape or lengthy reviews,” with eligible schools and libraries needing only to submit their existing E-Rate Form 471.

Flood, who also formerly worked for Kajeet, said school districts using AT&T or Verizon, for example, could still apply for the Mission Telecom service if they already use Cradle Point routers and are released from their contracts or determine the savings is worth breaking them.

“You just pop a new SIM card in and they’re good to go,” he added.

He also noted that the new discounts come without the strings attached to E-Rate. For example, the federal discounts only applied to the number of counted, registered students who accessed the Wi-Fi on home-to-school routes and back home again. With Mission Telecom, a school district could also use the Wi-Fi for sports activity and to power GPS location, student ridership and bus video transfer.

Related:School Bus Wi-Fi in Flux?
Related: Iowa’s Largest School District Mulls Future of School Bus Wi-Fi Program
Related: <Update: Senate Approves Stripping Individual Wi-Fi Hotspots from E-Rate Program

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School district officials have until Nov. 3 to apply for a grant designed to help implement measures to prevent school-based violence.

The funding would cover programs to “prevent violence in K–12 school settings by implementing behavioral threat assessments and/or intervention teams, technological solutions, such as anonymous reporting technology and other school safety strategies that assist in preventing school-based violence,” states an overview of the fiscal-year 2025 Student, Teachers and Officers Presenting (STOP) School Violence Program, administered by the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

Examples of funding options include developing and operating technology solutions, developing and implementing multidisciplinary behavioral threat assessment and/or intervention teams, educating students on how to prevent school violence, and training school personnel on how to prevent it.

School Transportation Active-Threat- Response Training (S.T.A.R.T.), an organization based in Ohio that provides evidence-based training programs nationwide, is encouraging districts to apply for the STOP Grant funding, to provide training to shool bus drivers and aides.

Related: WATCH: Michigan Association Releases Illegal Passing PSA for School Bus Safety Week
Related: Ohio School Bus Grant Program Launches, $10M Available
Related: Florida District Introduces Innovative Safety Training for School Bus Drivers
Related: Federal Bill Aims to Increase Awareness of Illegal School Bus Passing

Eligible applicants include state governments or public/state-controlled institutions of higher education (category 1) as well as local units of government (cities, counties, townships), federally recognized Native American tribal governments, non-profits (with or without 501(c)(3) status) other than institutions of higher education, independent school districts, and private institutions of higher education (Category 2).Category 2 awardees can receive up to $1 million per award.

The application process is two-part. Applicants must register in Grants.gov and follow the prompts to submit the SF-424 form by Oct. 27. The complete application is due Nov.3.

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The E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington, D.C., home of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, on July 14, 2025. (Photo by Jacob Fischler/States Newsroom)

This report has been updated.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court and the rest of the federal judiciary are set to run out of funding in the next few days, a new development in the ongoing government shutdown that will likely reverberate throughout much of the country. 

The Supreme Court, which is in the middle of its fall term and slated to hear oral arguments for the next several months, will run out of funding Saturday, according to a statement from public information officer Patricia McCabe.

“At that point, if new appropriated funds do not become available, the Court will make changes in its operations to comply with the Anti Deficiency Act,” McCabe wrote. “The Supreme Court will continue to conduct essential work such as hearing oral arguments, issuing orders and opinions, processing case filings, and providing police and building support needed for those operations.”

The building, she added, will be closed to the public but remain open for official business.

A spokesperson for the Supreme Court told States Newsroom in late September that it planned to “rely on permanent funds not subject to annual approval, as it has in the past, to maintain operations through the duration of short-term lapses of annual appropriations.”

U.S. federal courts will run out of funding “to sustain full, paid operations” Monday due to the ongoing government shutdown, though they “will maintain limited operations necessary to perform the Judiciary’s constitutional functions,” according to an announcement released Friday.

“Federal judges will continue to serve, in accordance with the Constitution, but court staff may only perform certain excepted activities permitted under the Anti-Deficiency Act,” the U.S. Courts statement said.

The shutdown began on Oct. 1 after Congress was unable to find a bipartisan path forward on a stopgap spending bill. The U.S. Courts said at the time they would be able to use “court fee balances and other funds not dependent on a new appropriation” to keep up and running through Friday.

The new announcement from the courts said that several activities are excepted and can legally continue during the funding lapse. Those include anything necessary “for the safety of human life and protection of property, and activities otherwise authorized by federal law. 

“Excepted work will be performed without pay during the funding lapse. Staff members not performing excepted work will be placed on furlough.”

The statement said that each individual court throughout the federal system will make its own decision about how active cases will proceed during the shutdown. 

“Anyone with Judiciary business should direct questions to the appropriate clerk of court’s office, probation and pretrial supervision office, or federal defender organization, or consult their websites,” the announcement read. 

People summoned for federal jury duty will still need to report as instructed, since that program “is funded by money not affected by the appropriations lapse and will continue to operate.”

The online case management and electronic filing system, known as PACER, will keep operating despite the shutdown’s impact on the courts. 

A newly created safety fund will award Ohio school districts with grants to update their fleets with safety features, like seatbelts.

The Ohio School Bus Working Group, called by Gov. Mike DeWine following the August 2024 ejection and death of 11-year-old Aidan Clark after his school bus was struck by an oncoming truck, issued final recommendations after five months of in-person meetings.

HB3 passed the state House unanimously in June to address some of the recommendations. In addition to creating the grant fund program, it also seeks to increase fines of illegally passing motorists and to designate the month of August as School Bus Safety Awareness Month.

While the bill awaits passage in the Senate, DeWine announced that the School Bus Safety Grant Program application has launched, and applications are being accepted Oct. 15 through Nov.14. The program will provide a total of $10 million in competitive school bus safety grants.

Related: Ohio School Bus Safety Act Raises Awareness of Illegal Passing
Related: Ohio Bill Seeks School Bus Illegal Passing Fine Increase, Safety Fund
Related: Ohio Teen Escapes Abduction Attempt While Waiting for School Bus; Suspect in Custody
Related: Texas School District Updates Seatbelt Policy Following School Bus Rollover
Related: School Bus Seatbelt Law Appears Imminent in Illinois

Eligible applicants include city, local, exempted village and joint vocational school districts as well as community schools, chartered nonpublic schools, STEM schools, educational service centers, and county boards of developmental disabilities. The grants can go toward “the repair, replacement, or addition of authorized school bus safety features to school buses in active service or for safety enhancements to the purchase of a new school bus” the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce lists on its website. “The program is designed for flexibility to allow for tailored purchases that meet specific safety needs, while also considering finances.”

Rudolph Breglia, an advocate for seatbelts in Ohio, said in his testimony at a House committee hearing on HB3 in April that priority of grant funding should be given to the installation of lap/shoulder seatbelts in school buses, “since these safety tools directly protect children from injury and death in the event of a school bus incident. Children always need direct protection provided by seatbelts since traffic accidents will always occur regardless of how hard we try to prevent accidents by adding preventative measures to school buses,” he continued, adding that applications should also be advised that evidence exists that installing lap/shoulder seatbelts has reached the status of a “Standard of Care” or “best practice.”

The post Ohio School Bus Grant Program Launches, $10M Available appeared first on School Transportation News.

Software company Edulog is using an infusion of private equity funding to expand its presence in the K-12 student transportation routing market and support new developments with its Athena cloud-native platform, while also streamlining company operations.

The family-run company founded in 1977 and based in Missoula, Montana announced Tuesday it is partnering with private equity firm Serent Capital. Details of the deal were not disclosed.

“Our mission is to help school districts make the most of their resources. With Serent’s backing, we can broaden our reach to even more districts and families across the country, and continue to lead the industry in innovation,” commented Edulog founder Dr. Hien Nguyen.

Company spokeswoman Lam Nguyen-Bull explained to School Transportation News the strategic growth investment will allow Edulog to work with a wider range of clients than in recent years, which is expected to make Athena more accessible and intuitive to school districts, regardless if they contract for a part-time route or a employ team of on-staff routers.

Athena is a modular, configurable, cloud-based routing platform designed for school districts of all sizes. Edulog said it integrates with student information systems to pull and populate transportation routers and eligibility with customizable maps, select and assign stops to runs and communicate with parents via a portal.

The Athena software roadmap includes enhancements in what CEO Sam Bull referred to in a statement as Edulog’s “unrivaled optimization suite.” It already includes depot, stop, special needs, run, route and bell time optimization, he noted.

Nguyen-Bull added that it also provides more intuitive dashboards, deeper reporting and a better ability to track ROI through cost savings, route efficiency and route utilization.

“We’re also building AI-driven features to layer on top of our unique industry leading mathematical algorithmic optimization to support proactive planning and faster decision-making,” she said. “In addition, we’re expanding our modules by enhancing tools like our parent and driver portals and exploring new capabilities like field trip management, fleet maintenance and dismissal workflows that can simplify operations even further.”

Part of the deal includes adding Perry Turbes, Serent’s senior operating executive, to Edulog’s board of directors as executive chair. He will oversee Serent’s Operating Executive Director program, which pairs experienced former CEOs with portfolio companies to provide strategic guidance and hands-on support.

Meanwhile, it’s business as usual for Edulog customers but with increased support, Nguyen-Bull added.

“The teams and faces our customers know aren’t going anywhere. What is changing is the level of investment in the things that matter most: Faster enhancements, more personalized service and a clearer voice for customers in the future of our platform,” she said.

Related: Retired NC State Director Graham Aligns with Edulog
Related: Ins, Outs of Routing Software Discussed at STN EXPO Reno
Related: New Technology Provides Data to School Bus Routing

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A WIC child participant takes a WIC-approved product off the shelf in a grocery store in Seattle in September 2024. (Photo by U.S. Department of Agriculture)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture is infusing $300 million into a key federal nutrition program to keep it running through October, while a government shutdown continues without an apparent end point. 

USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children — known as WIC — has relied on short-term funds amid the shutdown. That has worried advocates as states are left to fill the gaps when the money runs out. 

USDA is transferring $300 million into WIC from its child nutrition programs account, which has long been funded in part by tariff revenue from prior years, according to a congressional aide familiar with the plan. 

The transfer does not require congressional approval and is expected to keep the program afloat through the end of this month. 

A USDA spokesperson said in a statement to States Newsroom that the agency “will utilize tariff revenue to fund WIC for the foreseeable future,” though the spokesperson did not offer any specifics. President Donald Trump’s administration had announced the transfer last week but also did not provide much detail. 

“Our hope is that that money can just get released really swiftly and provide funds to states by next week to prevent further disruptions to WIC,” Georgia Machell, president and CEO of the National WIC Association, told States Newsroom. 

“Full funding for the program is still the priority here, and it’s great to have short-term solutions, but we need the long-term commitment from Congress to continue funding WIC on a bipartisan basis, which it’s done for decades,” added Machell, whose organization serves as the nonprofit advocacy voice and education arm of WIC. 

Dependent on congressional approval

The program serves nearly 7 million people and offers “free healthy foods, breastfeeding support, nutrition education and referrals to other services,” per USDA.

But as a discretionary program, WIC is subject to congressional approval each year — making it particularly vulnerable to the ongoing funding lapse.

With no funds so far congressionally appropriated for the program in fiscal 2026, which began Oct. 1, WIC has relied on several small pots of money in recent days to keep it running, including USDA’s $150 million contingency fund. States received allocations from that fund.

Leftover money for the program from the prior fiscal year was also reallocated to states last week, and was expected to keep WIC operating for several more days. 

Members of the U.S. Senate were scheduled to vote Tuesday on a stopgap spending bill passed by the House that would reopen the government. But with no deal at hand, it was expected the legislation would again fail to win the support of the 60 senators needed.

Senate rebuffs Trump budget cut for WIC

USDA’s decision to use the tariff revenue came as Trump has sought to slash part of WIC’s funding in his fiscal 2026 budget request, including taking away “more than $1.3 billion in fruit and vegetable benefits from 5.2 million participants,” according to an estimate from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. 

The full Senate passed its bipartisan bill dealing with Agriculture Department funding, including WIC, back in August. The measure fully funds the program for fiscal 2026 at $8.2 billion and “continues full funding for additional fruit and vegetable benefits,” according to Senate Appropriations Committee Democrats. 

Meanwhile, the House Appropriations Committee’s version of the bill, which passed out of the Republican-controlled panel in June, provides $7.5 billion for WIC, and includes a “10 percent cut in the cash value vouchers for fruits and vegetables for women and children,” according to the panel’s Democrats. 

Kate Scully, deputy director of WIC at the Food Research & Action Center, said “we’re still urging Congress to pass a full-year budget that provides WIC the funding it needs to serve everyone who’s eligible for the program and applies, and that includes keeping benefit levels where they are today.” 

Scully, whose national nonprofit works to reduce poverty-related hunger through research, advocacy and policy solutions, said “families should still utilize their benefits, go to scheduled appointments, but check with their state agency to see if there are any changes.” 

Scully said her organization is “hearing reports of some places closing,” but that might change with the $300 million infusion of funding. “So, certainly check with your state, but don’t not use your benefits or go to your appointments, because WIC should still be operational.” 

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks with reporters in the U.S Senate press gallery on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

This report has been updated.

WASHINGTON — Congress has just one week to break the stalemate and fund the government before active duty military members miss their first paycheck of the shutdown. 

That would be followed later in the month by absent wages for federal civilian employees and the staffers who work for lawmakers — benchmarks that would traditionally increase pressure on Democrats and Republicans to negotiate a deal.

But both sides remained dug in Wednesday, as the Senate failed to pass Republicans’ short-term government funding bill for the sixth time and Democrats were unable to get the support needed to advance their counterproposal. 

The 54-45 vote on the GOP bill and the 47-52 vote on Democrats’ legislation didn’t reach the 60 votes needed to advance under Senate rules.

Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, both Democrats, as well as Maine independent Sen. Angus King voted with Republicans to advance their multi-week funding bill. Kentucky GOP Sen. Rand Paul voted no.

The shutdown began on Oct. 1, the start of the federal government’s 2026 fiscal year.

Trump warms up to idea of separate bill on military pay

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., rejected the idea of voting on a stand-alone bill to provide paychecks to active duty military members during the shutdown, saying that if Democrats wanted to ensure salaries for federal workers, they should vote to advance the stopgap spending bill. 

“They live with that vote. They made that decision. The House is done,” Johnson said at a morning press conference. “The ball is now in the Senate’s court. It does us no good to be here dithering on show votes. We did it. We sent the product over.”

Trump, speaking from the White House later in the afternoon, broke with GOP leaders in Congress on passing a stand-alone bill to provide pay for military members during the shutdown. 

“Yeah, that probably will happen. We don’t have to worry about it yet. That’s a long time,” Trump said. “You know what one week is for me? An eternity. One week for me is a long time. We’ll take care of it. Our military is always going to be taken care of.”

Johnson also appeared to fully reject an idea floated by the Trump administration not to provide back pay for furloughed federal employees, which is required by a 2019 law. 

“It’s my understanding that the law is that they would be paid. There is some other legal analysis that’s floating around. I haven’t yet had time to dig into and read that,” Johnson said. “But it has always been the case, it is tradition and I think it is statutory law that federal employees be paid. And that’s my position. I think they should be.”

Trump muddied the waters on that issue during his afternoon appearance, blaming Democrats for how his administration plans to handle back pay for furloughed federal workers. 

“We’re going to see. Most of them are going to get back pay and we’re going to try to make sure of that,” Trump said. “But some of them are being hurt very badly by the Democrats and they therefore won’t qualify.”

The shutdown will likely only end after congressional leaders begin talking with each other about core policy issues, including how to address enhanced tax credits for people who buy their own health insurance from the Affordable Care Act Marketplace. The credits are set to expire at the end of the year, spurring huge increases in health insurance costs.

Democrats say a deal must be reached before they’ll vote to advance the GOP stopgap spending bill that would fund the government through Nov. 21. Republican leaders maintain they won’t negotiate until after Democrats vote to open the government.

‘You can’t take the federal government hostage’

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said he and other GOP lawmakers are willing to talk with Democrats about the tax credits, but only after the government reopens. 

“They have other issues that they want to bring up, which I said before we’re happy to discuss, and yes, there are some things that I think there’s interest on both sides in trying to address when it comes to health care in this country,” Thune said. “But you can’t take the federal government hostage and expect to have a reasonable conversation on those issues.”

Thune said the stopgap funding bill is needed to give both chambers more time to work out a final agreement on the dozen full-year government funding bills, which were supposed to become law by the start of the fiscal year.

“What this does is provide a short-term extension in order for all that to happen,” he said. “That’s all that we’re talking about.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Republicans are divided on health care issues and want to avoid a public debate over the Affordable Care Act tax credits. 

Schumer then read part of a social media post by Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in which she said she was “absolutely disgusted” that health premiums will double by the end of the year without action.

“More Republicans should listen to her because, on this issue, she’s right on the money,” Schumer said. “Meanwhile, Democrats’ position hasn’t changed. We urge our Republican colleagues to join us in a serious negotiation to reopen the government and extend ACA premiums.”

Trump threats

The shutdown’s ramifications will continue to get worse the longer lawmakers remain intransigent, especially given President Donald Trump’s efforts to differentiate this funding lapse from those in the past.

Trump has said he’ll lay off federal workers by the thousands, cancel funding approved by Congress for projects in Democratic regions of the country and may not provide back pay for the hundreds of thousands of furloughed federal employees.

Trump and administration officials have been vague about when and how they’d implement layoffs, but a federal judge hearing arguments in a suit brought by a federal employee labor union has ordered government attorneys to file a brief later this week detailing its plans and its timeline.  

Northern District of California Judge Susan Illston has given the Trump administration until the end of Friday to share details of any planned or in-progress Reduction in Force plans, “including the earliest date that those RIF notices will go out.”

Illston, who was nominated by former President Bill Clinton, also told the Trump administration to detail what agencies anticipate implementing layoffs and how many employees that would impact. 

Illston set Oct. 16 for oral arguments between the American Federation of Government Employees and federal government attorneys over AFGE’s request for a temporary restraining order to block the Trump administration from implementing layoffs during the shutdown.

Murkowski reports informal talks

Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, part of a bipartisan group that has begun informal talks, said during a brief interview Wednesday that the government must reopen before real steps can be taken on the ACA tax credits. 

“I think the leadership has made very, very clear that the way to open up the government is, let’s pass a bill that will allow us to open up the government, and then there’s a lot of good conversations that can go on,” Murkowski said. “It doesn’t mean that we wait until then to start conversations, and that’s what we’re doing. We’re talking but we’re talking outside of the range of your microphones.”

She said, “There are not a lot of guarantees around this place, are there?” when asked by a reporter whether Republicans could provide Democrats with assurances on floor votes on ACA tax credit extensions if they vote for the stopgap spending bill. 

North Carolina GOP Sen. Thom Tillis said he expects the shutdown to last for at least a couple more weeks and urged Democratic senators to vote to reopen the government. 

“Go take a look at the list of Democrats who are either not running for reelection or not up until ‘28 or ‘30,” Tillis said. “There are plenty of them to walk the plank like I have multiple times to get the government funded and then the discussions start.”

Oklahoma Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin said that talks between Democrats and Republicans are “stalled” but “we’re having conversations with everybody.” 

South Dakota GOP Sen. Mike Rounds said that lawmakers have had bipartisan “visits” though no real conversations. 

“There’s no framework,” Rounds said. “There’s just a matter of a clarification about how important it is to get the shutdown over with. And once we get that shutdown over with, we’ll go back to bipartisan work in the Senate.”

Ariana Figueroa contributed to this report.

White House budget director Russ Vought, who is depicted as the Grim Reaper in a video posted by President Donald Trump during the shutdown in October 2025,  speaks with reporters inside the U.S. Capitol building on July 15, 2025. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — Trump administration officials on Friday defended the decision to cancel federal projects in regions of the country that have voted for Democrats, saying the move isn’t political but an effort to reduce the size and scope of government during the shutdown.

Republican leaders in Congress also backed the White House’s decision to punish Democratic voters by unilaterally canceling funding that lawmakers approved on a bipartisan basis. Democrats, however, said it’s an unacceptable escalation that further erodes Congress’ constitutional authority over spending.

“The president and (White House budget director) Russ Vought were not given any additional authority under a shutdown, and they shouldn’t pretend they have it and they shouldn’t act like it and they certainly should not be threatening people,” Senate Appropriations Committee ranking member Patty Murray, D-Wash., said on a call with reporters.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., gave a bit of a mixed message during a morning press conference, saying that while decisions about which projects to cancel are “tough,” President Donald Trump and other officials “are having fun with” the shutdown on social media.

“Are they taking great pleasure in that? No,” Johnson said, referring to the actual governing. “Is he trolling the Democrats? Yes, because that’s what President Trump does and people are having fun with this.”

Later in the day, Johnson opted to further delay bringing the House back into session, canceling a second week of floor votes, which means the earliest that chamber will return to Capitol Hill is Oct. 14. 

Shutdown ‘is not a joke’

Trump has posted frequently on social media during the shutdown, including a video that depicted House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries wearing a sombrero and a video that appeared to be created by artificial intelligence depicting Vought as the Grim Reaper.

Murray said on the call with reporters that Republicans posting the videos show they are treating the shutdown “as a joke.” 

“This is not a joke. This is real,” Murray said. “They need to stop the taunting. They need to stop the childish behavior. They need to stop hurting people and they need to come and work with us to solve a serious problem in front of our country.”

Jeffries, asked about the social media videos during a press conference, said it shows Republicans are on “defense” over their policies on health care and other issues. 

“Donald Trump has behaved in a deeply unserious and deeply unhinged manner and it’s evidence of the fact that Republicans have a weak argument, so they’ve resorted to deepfake videos and to lying about the nature of the policy decisions,” Jeffries said.

Projects axed in Chicago, New York, blue states

Johnson said he spoke earlier this week with Vought — one of the authors of Project 2025 who said previously he wanted “bureaucrats to be traumatically affected” — and that Vought “takes no pleasure in this.”

“Russ wants to see a smaller, more efficient, more lean, effective federal government, as we do. But he doesn’t want people to lose jobs. He doesn’t want to do that,” Johnson said. “But that’s his responsibility. So he’s very carefully, methodically, very deliberately looking through that to see which decisions can be made in the best interest of the American people. That’s his obligation and that’s his real desire.”

Typically during a government shutdown, federal employees are categorized as exempt, meaning they keep working without pay, or are placed on furlough. Both categories receive back pay once Congress votes to approve a stopgap spending bill.

But Vought has indicated he wants to use the shutdown as an excuse to lay off federal workers en masse, a step not taken during past funding lapses. He’s also taken to social media several times to announce canceled or halted projects in areas of the country that don’t regularly vote for Republicans.

Vought wrote in a post on Wednesday, shortly after the shutdown began, that $18 billion in Transportation Department funding for the Hudson Tunnel Project and the Second Ave Subway in New York City was put “on hold.” Both are in Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and Jeffries’ home state.

Vought then said the Energy Department would cancel $8 billion in climate funding that was slated to go to projects in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington.

The Washington State Standard reported some of the funding would have gone toward the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub and Source New Mexico posted an article detailing a few impacted projects, including funds to the “New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology for the third phase of a project … to develop a storage hub at a commercial scale within (the) San Juan basin.”

Additionally, Vought on Friday froze $2.1 billion in Transportation Department funding for the “Red Line Extension and the Red and Purple Modernization Project” in Chicago, writing it was “put on hold to ensure funding is not flowing via race-based contracting.”

Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin represents Illinois, and the state’s governor, JB Pritzker, has been in a public back-and-forth with Trump over immigration enforcement, which the administration has heightened in Chicago. Pritzker has repeatedly rebuffed Trump’s requests to bring in the National Guard.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said during the press conference with Speaker Johnson that it makes sense the Trump administration would implement the shutdown through a political lens.

“I think they’re going to make decisions that are consistent with their priorities,” Thune said. “And yes, they’re going to have a different political view of the world than the Democrats might have.”

Hatch Act questions

The actions of Trump administration officials have raised questions about whether they could be in violation of the Hatch Act, a 1939 law that “limits certain political activities of federal employees.” 

The Office of Special Counsel writes on its website the law is meant to “ensure that federal programs are administered in a nonpartisan fashion, to protect federal employees from political coercion in the workplace, and to ensure that federal employees are advanced based on merit and not based on political affiliation.”

Any federal employee found to have violated the law can face removal from service or a fine of up to $1,000, among other possible repercussions. 

Public Citizen has filed numerous complaints against the Trump administration, alleging that banners and messages posted on government websites about the shutdown violate the Hatch Act. 

“Even for an administration that flouts ethics guidelines regularly, these messages are a particularly egregious and clear-cut sign that Trump and his cabinet see themselves as above the law,” Craig Holman, a government ethics expert with Public Citizen, wrote in a statement. 

As with many of the Trump administration’s actions, any new precedent set by the Republican administration could be used by a future Democratic president in a way that would very likely be harmful to Republican voters and regions of the country that consistently support GOP policies.

Layoffs still threatened

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said during an afternoon briefing that administration officials are trying to determine where to make additional spending cuts and layoffs during the shutdown. 

“The Office of Management and Budget is in constant communication and contact right now with our Cabinet secretaries and agencies across the board to identify, unfortunately, where layoffs have to be made and where cuts have to happen,” Leavitt said. “But again, the Democrats have an opportunity to prevent this if they vote to reopen the government.”

Leavitt declined to say whether the administration would back away from plans to lay off federal workers by the thousands or cancel funding for projects in Democratic areas if Republicans and Democrats in Congress strike a deal to reopen government. 

Leavitt said the “blueprint” for shrinking the size and scope of the federal government is whatever the president and administration officials come up with, after being asked by a Fox News reporter about Trump writing in a social media post earlier this week that Vought was “of PROJECT 2025 Fame,” after the president repeatedly distanced himself from the document on the campaign trail.

METHUEN, Mass. – Lawrence Public Schools, NRT Bus Inc., Zenobē, and partners today hosted a ribbon cutting to celebrate the deployment of 35 new electric school buses. Thanks to successful public and private partnerships, Lawrence Public Schools has deployed 25 new electric school buses, supported by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and 10 minibuses, supported by an initiative led by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) and funded by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), as part of their regular home-to-school operations. The buses are based in Methuen and support clean transportation for Lawrence Public Schools.

“To give students a comfortable, quieter daily bus ride while benefiting public health, the environment and Lawrence taxpayers is a big win for our entire community,” said Lawrence Public Schools Superintendent Ralph Carrero. “This initiative is the power of public-private partnership at its best.”

“As part of our ongoing commitment to reduce emissions and promote cleaner air for our students and schools, we are thrilled to announce the launch of this charging site to support our new electric fleet for Lawrence Public Schools,” said Scott Sheridan, Senior Vice President of NRT Bus. “We are grateful for the hard work and dedication of all our partners from the public and private sector who made this project possible and are helping us power this new fleet for the 2025 school year.”

“We’re drawing on our global fleet electrification experience to bring clean transportation and its many health and climate benefits to NRT Bus, Beacon Mobility and Lawrence Public Schools. This is an excellent example of public-private partnership in action, and we believe projects like this can be as financially sustainable as they are environmentally sustainable and beneficial,” commented Zenobē Executive Vice President of U.S. EV Sales and Marketing Maggie Clancy.

Undertaken as a partnership between the EPA, MassCEC, Beacon Mobility, Zenobē, Sargent & Lundy, National Grid, Liberty Utilities, and the school district, the charging site was completed last summer and is being used to charge and store the 35 new electric buses.

“This investment means healthier air for students, quieter neighborhoods, and cost savings for school districts over the long term,” said Rachel Ackerman, Senior Program Director for Clean Transportation at MassCEC. “Projects like this show how innovative partnerships can deliver immediate community benefits while accelerating the state’s transition to clean transportation. MassCEC is proud to support Lawrence Public Schools in putting these new electric minibuses on the road.”

Electrified by National Grid and Liberty Utilities, the charging station site provides a sustainable hub for recharging the electric batteries that power the new fleet to shuttle Merrimack Valley students and community members to and from school and other local activities.

“At National Grid, we believe fleet electrification is a key component of building a sustainable and diversified energy future,” said Jake Navarro, Director of Clean Transportation, National Grid. “We’re proud to collaborate with a range of stakeholders to invest in and modernize our energy infrastructure to support the customers and communities we serve.”

Lawrence Public Schools deployed the 25 new electric buses as part of the EPA’s Clean School Bus Program in 2022. The school district serves 13,000 K-12 students. The 25 electric school buses alone are projected to reduce carbon emissions by an estimated 1.35 million pounds per year, equivalent to removing 136 gas-powered passenger cars off the road for one year. In addition, the district was awarded $1,670,000 under MassCEC’s ACT School Bus Deployment Program in 2023 which was used to fund the 10 minibuses.

All vehicles were placed in service for the current 2025 school year.

About Zenobē Energy Ltd. (Zenobē):
Zenobē is an EV fleet and grid-scale battery storage specialist, headquartered in the U.K. The company began operations in 2017 and now employs >380 FTEs with a wide range of leading skills including electrical engineering, software development, computer sciences and financing. Zenobē has around a 25% market share of the U.K. EV bus sector and supports over 3,400 electric vehicles across 120 depots globally. The company is the largest owner and operator of EV buses in the U.K., Australia and New Zealand. Zenobē is also the leading owner and operator of grid-scale batteries on the Great Britain transmission network with >1GW of battery storage assets in operation or under construction. Zenobē’s North American headquarters are in Chicago with a subsidiary office in New York and it is actively hiring in Canada and the U.S. For more information visit zenobe.com or LinkedIn.

The post Lawrence Public Schools, NRT Bus, Zenobē, and Partners Host Ribbon Cutting for New Electric Bus Fleet appeared first on School Transportation News.

As expected, the Federal Communications Commission voted 2-1 to end E-Rate eligibility of school bus Wi-Fi as well as other off-campus internet hotspots.

The declaratory ruling approved Tuesday finds Wi-Fi is now ineligible for E-Rate funding for pending fiscal year 2025 reimbursement requests because two of three FCC commissioners “determined that the best reading of section 254 of the Communications Act of 1934, is that the use and provision of these services on school buses does not serve an educational purpose as defined by E-Rate program rules and conflicts with the statute’s direction to enhance access to E-Rate-eligible services for classrooms and libraries,” FCC said in a statement.

School Wi-Fi and hotspot experts disagree.

At the urging of FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, the open meeting agenda was updated last week to include reconsideration of a 2023 eclaratory ruling “that would align E-Rate eligibility with section 254 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and make school bus Wi-Fi an ineligible expense. FCC also revoked the federal school hotspot program. School bus Wi-Fi and hotspot advocates say the declaratory ruling disproportionately affects low-income and rural students.

Carr expressed his intent earlier this month to end federal reimbursements for school bus Wi-Fi. Normally the FCC seats five commissioners but currently only has three with two vacancies: Carr is joined by fellow Republican Olivia Trusty, who was confirmed by the Senate earlier this year, and Anna Gomez, a Democrat.

Gomez, who was the lone dissenting vote Tuesday, was one of three votes in 2023 to pass then-Chairman Jessica Rosenworcel’s Learning Without Limits, which included the school bus Wi-Fi eligibility. Following a 2024 FCC order to expand the Universal Service program to fund hotspots outside of schools and libraries, school districts were allowed to apply and be selected for reimbursements. Carr was also a commissioner at the time and cast a no vote.

FCC said Tuesday a statement from Gomez was forthcoming. On Sept. 3, she cautioned that millions of students as well as seniors nationwide stand to suffer as “FCC is moving to strip that connectivity away while doing nothing to make broadband more affordable.”

”Their latest proposals will only widen the gap between those with access to modern-day tools and those left behind. We must all fight back against this level of cruelty and indifference by this administration,” she added.

Carr contends the initiative illegally extended the Emergency Connectivity Fund passed by Congress to provide for federal funding of school bus Wi-Fi for neighborhood hotspots during the COVID-19 pandemic and school shutdowns for children needing to access virtual classes and complete homework.

Learning Without Limits intended to “close the homework gap” between areas of the country where students have access to and can afford broadband internet with economically disadvantaged and rural communities that do not or cannot.

Sen. Edward Markey of Massachusetts, a Democrat, is one of the original authors of the E-Rate program.

“Rolling back the FCC’s hotspot rule is a direct attack on students and educators who need Wi-Fi to complete homework assignments, create lesson plans, and connect with each other,” he said in an email to School Transportation News Friday. “This move is short-sighted and cruel. It saves no money and only makes life harder for millions of Americans. We should be expanding connections, not cutting them off, and I will fight to keep every child, family and library online.”

Markey led a letter sent to Carr by Senate Democrats Monday asking him to continue allowing school bus Wi-Fi to be an allowable E-Rate expense. The letter notes that FCC awarded $48 million through E-Rate in fiscal year 2024 for school bus Wi-Fi.

Further frustrating Markey and other school bus Wi-Fi and off-campus hotspot supporters, the FCC only gave one week notice of the meeting agenda change and did not allow for public comment. Joey Wender, executive director of the Schools Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition, said the fate of internet access for students “should not be rushed through,” pointing out school districts nationwide have already made purchasing plans under the assumption federal funding would be available going forward.

“We believe FCC should provide ample notice of any changes and for stakeholders to comment, tell their stories, and share their data,” he added.

Echoing Sen. Ted Cruz, the leading opponent of E-Rate for school bus Wi-Fi and hotspots in Congress, Carr asserts that school bus Wi-Fi and hotspots were never meant to be E-Rate eligible expenses. Advocates argue that Congress left open for interpretation section 254(c)(1) of the Communications Act, reauthorized in 1996 to add Universal Service as the mechanism that funds internet service for schools, libraries and health care providers, the definition of what an elementary school and secondary school, along with libraries, for where Wi-Fi and internet connections can be established and reimbursed.

“Congress deliberately left the term classroom undefined in the Telecommunications Act because it understood that students learn in many different settings, both inside and outside of traditional school buildings,” commented Keith Krueger, executive director of the Consortium for School Networking, or CoSN. “That flexibility has always been a strength of the E-Rate program, allowing it to adapt as learning environments change.”
He also noted the federal law refers to “an evolving level of services.”

“From that perspective, school bus Wi-Fi is consistent with the program’s purpose. It is simply one of the modern settings where students do their work,” he added.

During a keynote address at the 2024 STN EXPO West, Krueger told the audience the FCC estimates between 8.5 million and 16 million school children nationwide lack broadband internet at home.

Wender noted FCC supports internet connectivity reimbursed by E-Rate for administrative offices and book mobiles that extend to parking lots, and school bus Wi-Fi is an even better use-case.

FCC’s Carr and Gomez as well as Sen. Cruz had not responded to questions posed by STN at this report.

But Carr and Cruz have publicly stated that school bus Wi-Fi is poses a safety issue for students using it, with Cruz likening it to TikTok for school children.

However, E-Rate requires all funded communications devices comply with the Child Internet Protection Act. School bus Wi-Fi services must include filters that, in conjunction with closed school district networks, prohibit students from accessing unapproved sites and logs when and where the attempts occur.

In a 2023 announcement of the All Eyes on Board Act to combat FCC voting to allow school bus Wi-Fi, Cruz along with Sens. Senator Ted Budd of North Carolina and Shelley Capito of West Virginia acknowledged CIPA regulations but added “there is currently no provision requiring schools to block access to distracting and addictive social media apps or websites. As a result, the E-Rate program risks inadvertently enabling access to social media in schools,” though state laws do exist requiring the sites be blocked.

Related: Trusty Confirmed to FCC as School Bus Wi-Fi Future Hangs in Balance
Related: School Bus Wi-Fi in Flux?
Related: Iowa’s Largest School District Mulls Future of School Bus Wi-Fi Program

Earlier this month, Sen. Cruz encouraged the House to pass a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution to overturn what he called “the illegal Biden hotspot rule.” In May, he led a similar CRA through the Senate, where it passed to end federal funding of external hotspot devices some school districts send home with their students. But so far, Cruz has not garnered sufficient votes in the House to consolidate and pass a final CRA, which would be needed for President Trump’s signature into law.

Cruz has also said there are existing FCC programs that could fund school bus Wi-Fi, but he has not provided specifics.

Commented Wender, “I cannot speak to the intentions of policy makers. I can only speak to the consequences of ending the [school bus Wi-Fi] program, which is widening the digital divide resulting in low-income kids not being able to do their homework.”

Still, there’s hope, he said. Wender called FCC action “the lesser of two evils” because a future commission could reverse a decision and reinstate E-Rate reimbursement. The passage of a CRA would be more permanent.

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With 2.2 million Canadian students back in school via the yellow school bus, a new report by the Canadian Electric School Bus Alliance (CESBA) highlights the need for equity of access and funding to make the transition to electric school buses a successful one. ​

Fewer than 4 percent of Canada’s 51,000 school buses, about 2,000 vehicles, are currently electric. But 70 percent of school buses on the road are set to be replaced in the next two to seven years, the report emphasizes.

Embedding Equity in Canada’s Transition to Electric School Buses calls on federal and provincial policymakers to ensure no one is left behind during the country’s move toward zero-emissions school buses. It identifies challenges faced by indigenous communities, students with disabilities and under-resourced areas in accessing ESBs. Adoption remains “significantly lower” in indigenous and remote communities nationwide, due primarily to cost barriers. ​

“We want to make sure that provinces roll out some financial incentive for electric school buses because right now just for the deployment there are absolutely no guidelines that force school bus operators or school districts to prioritize electric school buses in communities where there is more pollution and where they’re actually underserved,” lead author Valerie Tremblay of Green Communities Canada, a co-coordinator of CESBA, told School Transportation News.

The paper notes most ESBs range from $400,000 to $600,000 per bus compared to $125,000 for a diesel model — and related infrastructure, which proves especially challenging for indigenous and remote communities that already have higher transportation costs and barriers to funding. For example, transporting a student in northern Alberta costs $1,279 compared to $363 in urban areas, according to a report on education transportation needs prepared for the Assembly of First Nations, an advocacy group for indigenous people across Canada. ​

School bus contractor Switzer-Carty is a CESBA member company and currently operates two, 2018 model-year, Type C ESBs from the former Lion Electric. Those buses transport general education students, said Rich Bagdonas, vice president of business development for Switzer-Carty. But funding is also at issue.

The federal government targets 35 percent of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles sales to be zero emissions by 2030 and 100 percent by 2040. The Zero Emissions Transit Fund (ZETF) covers capital and planning costs, while the Zero Emissions Vehicle Infrastructure Program funds chargers.

But Bagdonas pointed out that Ontario, where Switzer-Carty mainly operates, does not currently offer provincial funding programs or incentives though the company is exploring other local options.

Tremblay added ESB funding and deployment has so far focused on Montreal and Quebec, where 80 percent or about 1,600 ESBs operate, and other urban cities. Quebec also mandates nearly two-thirds of school bus fleets be electrified by 2030. British Columbia operates about 150 ESBs and also offers incentives, noted Bagdonas, as the province also aligns with California’s mandate that all trucks and buses be electrified by 2036.

Further illustrating the challenge, the report shares that Prince Edward’s Island also has no funding program currently in place despite targeting 100 percent ESBs province-wide by 2030. It had been relying on funding from the Canada Infrastructure Bank Zero-Emissions Bus Initiative, but those funds are now exhausted.

The report recommends revising provincial and federal budgets to cover higher upfront ESB costs and better support small fleet operators.

Tremblay and associate Nicole Roach note that procurement guidelines and safety standards also need updating to ensure universal bus design and a wider range of school bus models that provide accessibility and inclusivity for all. For example, they call for standard wheelchair lifts for students with disabilities.

Tremblay and Roach write that Type A school buses now offer increased range, the prior lack of which had posed “significant challenges,” but supply remains constrained with only a few models available in Canada. The availability of Type C school buses equipped with wheelchair lifts “has the potential to ease some of the equity concerns tied to ESB adoption, especially for smaller operators or school districts,” they write.

Then, there is the obvious reduction in exposure to diesel emissions, which not only improves health but also provides better academic outcomes and school attendance. The report cites findings from the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine and the National Bureau of Economic Research in Massachusetts.

The report also considers the entire lifecycle of electric school buses, from resource extraction to manufacturing, adoption and use to disposal, and calls for intentional planning to ensure the transition benefits all communities, especially those on indigenous lands. Canada is a leading global producer of many critical minerals essential for ESB production, with mining predominantly located in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta.

Meanwhile, the report also notes the need for improved working conditions by increasing wages and operational funding for school transportation staff, “as electric buses provide cleaner and quieter environments but may limit extra income opportunities due to range constraints.” This includes workforce development to expand ESB maintenance training programs that address skill gaps and job losses in the transition. ​

In addition to newly manufactured ESBs, the report recommends funding pilot projects to convert diesel buses to electric, preventing the export of decommissioned buses to countries with weaker safety standards, policies for adopting safe recycling of electric vehicle batteries and strengthening protections in mining practices to respect the rights of indigenous people and address human rights abuses linked to Canadian mining companies. ​

Related: WRI Research Highlights Monetary Health Benefits of Electric School Buses
Related: Previous Lion Electric School Bus Warranties Voided by Company Sale
Related: Report Finds Challenges to California Vehicle Electrification Plans

The post Report: Inequities in Canadian Electric School Bus Transition Threaten At-risk Populations appeared first on School Transportation News.

A new report reaffirms California’s commitment to zero-emission vehicle adoption and deployment despite attempts by Congress and the Trump administration to remove federal waivers that provide the state authority to cut pollution levels within its borders and elsewhere.

The state currently is involved in multiple lawsuits challenging the administration’s efforts to revoke the waivers approved by the Biden administration’s Environmental Protection Agency and others.

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) released the report last week in response to Gov. Gavin  Executive Order N-27-25 in June that directs CARB and several other state agencies to recommend strategies that make clean transportation more affordable, reliable and accessible. ​The report outlines strategies to expand the adoption of Zero-Emission Vehicles (ZEVs) across all vehicle types, including school buses, as part of the state’s broader effort to combat air pollution and climate change. ​

The report highlights California’s leadership in clean transportation, noting that the state has already surpassed its goal of deploying 2 million ZEVs. ​With 56 ZEV manufacturers operating in the state and nearly 178,000 public or shared private electric vehicle chargers installed, California is setting the pace for the nation. ​

However, the CARB report notes that five of the 10 most polluted cities in the U.S. are in California, and millions of residents still live in areas with dangerously high ozone levels, especially in the Los Angeles area and the San Joaquin Valley. ​

To address these challenges, CARB recommends actions across six key areas: Private investment, incentives, infrastructure, fuel pricing, regulations, and procurement. CARB seeks to sustain the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program that utilizes credits from 200 participating companies and from utilities to subsidize clean fuels like renewable diesel and to continue taking advantage of other existing funding programs. It recommends backfilling the federal clean air vehicle tax credits that are set to expire at the end of next month and providing “reliable and consistent funding” to the agency and the California Energy Commission for ZEV deployment and infrastructure incentive programs.

Noting that infrastructure remains one of the largest barriers to ZEV adoption, the report highlights the need for increased reliability of and access to EV chargers, including timely repair. CARB also recommends streamlining permitting processes and utility energization timelines. This includes implementing flexible service connections and other strategies to eliminate delays in EV charging installation.

CARB also calls for unlocking the benefits of V2G by improving the energization process to enable vehicles to power homes and businesses or to export power to the grid during peak demand periods. This includes developing utility rates “that align EV charging and discharging with grid needs” and establishing incentives to automakers that build EVs that can provide backup power. CARB also writes that standards are needed for chargers to enable the use of vehicle-grid integration.

School buses are directly impacted by the state’s push for ZEV adoption. The report emphasizes the need for incentives and infrastructure to support the transition to zero-emission buses. ​For school districts, this could mean additional access to funding programs that make it easier to replace aging diesel buses with electric or even hydrogen-powered alternatives. ​Additionally, CARB says the focus on building reliable charging infrastructure could alleviate concerns about fueling capacity and range limitations. ​

For companies operating school buses, the report’s recommendations present both opportunities and challenges. The emphasis on private investment through programs like the LCFS could provide financial incentives for operators to transition their fleets. ​Additionally, the state’s focus on workforce development could help create a pipeline of skilled workers to maintain and operate ZEVs. ​

However, the transition will require careful planning. CARB states operators will need to navigate new regulations, invest in charging or fueling infrastructure and ensure their fleets meet the state’s reliability and durability standards. Collaboration with state agencies and local governments will be key to overcoming these hurdles.

The CARB report also notes 17 other states and the District of Columbia have chosen to adopt at least part of California’s vehicle standards. The demand in these states for clean transportation collectively represents 40 percent of the nation’s new light-duty vehicle market and 25 percent of the nation’s new heavy-duty vehicle market, which are three to four times that of California alone. In addition, three of these states have established complementary regulations similar to California’s LCFS to further advance the clean vehicle market.

Related: EPA Proposal Seeks to Eliminate GHG Regulations for Vehicles, Engines
Related: Update: Congress Shifts Tide in Regulatory Demands for Clean Energy
Related: CARB Uses $33M in Funding to Target Other Zero-Emissions School Travel

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