Education committee votes to draft SB1 to increase special education resources; members flag size and cost

The Connecticut legislative education committee moved to draft Senate Bill 1 — described by the chair as an act to increase resources for students and schools with special education services — after debate about the bill’s likely size and cost.

Representative Leslie Zukas told the committee she would vote "no to flag" SB1, saying in part that, "in the past, when I've seen SB1 over the years, it's a very, very large bill with a lot of stuff in it," and that she hoped substantial special-education items would be included but wanted to flag the measure for attention. Senator Eric Berthel echoed concern about the bill’s tendency to expand during the process and requested a roll-call vote.

The clerk conducted a roll-call vote on the motion to draft SB1 and the transcript records individual votes for those present: 32 members recorded "yes" and 9 recorded "no." The chair noted the clerk would leave votes open until 1:00 p.m. to permit additional members to register their positions. Several members explicitly stated they were casting a preliminary 'no' to flag the bill for further scrutiny rather than as a final refusal to support future special-education provisions.

The committee recessed until 1:00 p.m.; the roll-call as recorded in the transcript will be updated if additional votes are received before the clerk closes the roll at the designated time.