Gov. Polis does not plan to move forward with special legislative session on education

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — During Gov. Jared Polis’ update to the state of Colorado Tuesday, he announced schools will be receiving what he called outbreak handbooks. 

Polis says the handbooks are designed to guide administrators in the event a student or staff member is diagnosed with COVID-19. The handbook is meant to alleviate some of the stress associated with returning to school in the fall.

The same day, republican lawmakers in Colorado urged the democratic governor to call a special session on education to address student and parent concerns before the 2020-2021 school year starts in a matter of weeks.

In the letter, republicans propose a plan called "Safer Learning Choices." It suggests taking some of the per pupil revenue schools get each year and giving some of it to parents if they decide to school their kids from home. Sen. Paul Lundeen tells KRDO that amounts to about $8,000 per student each year.

Gov. Polis reports democrats don't like the plan.

“My understanding is that Senate democrats have already responded that they don’t support that proposal to cut funding to our public schools," Polis said. "And frankly that proposal would result in less choices for parents by forcing the closure of some schools.”

Sen. Lundeen represents District 9 in El Paso County. He says the governor is looking at funding the wrong way.

“I don’t think it takes money from students," Lundeen said. "In fact, it makes sure we are providing the safety and educational opportunities students need.”

A special legislative session would come at a cost to Colorado taxpayers.

“A special session, we tend to put a price tag on it around $25,000 a day," Lundeen said. "When you’re talking about making sure the 13 or 14 billion dollars we spend on education is spent well — $25,000 a day for two or three or four days is a pretty small cost.”

Gov. Polis added that, if republicans and democrats can come to more of an agreement on a proposal, a special session might be warranted.

“Certainly if there’s a state solution that I’m confident there’s a legislative majority for, I wouldn’t hesitate to be open to that," Polis said.

The countdown is on, as some Colorado Springs school districts are scheduled to resume instruction in less than three weeks.