A bill authored by State Sen. Victoria Spartz (R-Noblesville) that would encourage a study of the governance and legislative oversight of Indiana’s education system recently passed the Senate by a vote of 38-8.
Senate Enrolled Act 546 would urge the Legislative Council to task the Interim Study Committee on Education to study the composition of the State Board of Education (SBOE), Governor’s Workforce Cabinet (GWC) and Commission for Higher Education (CHE).
Spartz
“Per the Indiana Constitution, the legislative branch is responsible for education,” Spartz said. “We have been making a lot of changes to streamline our education system and align it with the new demands of the 21st century, including changing the state superintendent role to an appointed position and updating the GWC, among other things. Starting in 2020, the governor will have a direct responsibility for the education system in our state, but it’s important the legislative branch has the proper checks and balances in place to monitor the implementation of education policies with the least possible amount of bureaucracy.”
The bill would also task the committee with studying the feasibility of merging the SBOE and GWC.
SEA 546 will now move to the governor for consideration.