SB305 Summary

• Establishes the Renewing Alabama's Investment in Student Excellence (RAISE) Fund to provide additional funding to Alabama public K-12 schools beginning in fiscal year 2025-2026, contingent on legislative appropriation.

• Creates weighted funding allocations for students in poverty (up to 20%), special education (up to 150% for Tier III), English Language Learners (up to 15%), gifted students (up to 5%), and charter school students (up to 10%).

• Requires local education agencies to submit student data, develop accountability plans with student achievement goals aligned to state assessments, and report on expenditures and outcomes of RAISE funds through an Education Report Card.

• Establishes a RAISE Act Review Committee by January 1, 2028, and an Accountability and Implementation Board by July 1, 2028, to monitor LEA progress and recommend corrective actions if adequate progress is not achieved within five years.

• Directs the State Department of Education to develop a unified application by February 2028 to streamline state and federal funding applications and reporting for LEAs, to be operational for the 2028-2029 budget cycle.