KEY TAKEAWAYS: Gov. Jeff Landry‘s executive order would reduce the Minimum Foundation Program by $168 million to fund one-time teacher and support staff stipends. School districts would see average state funding reductions of about 5% if lawmakers approve the plan. The Legislature will vote on the proposal June 23, requiring a two-thirds majority for approval. Education officials say districts may need to use unassigned fund balances to offset reduced state funding.   Louisiana education officials say Gov. Jeff Landry’s order to cut $168 million from the state’s public school funding formula will reduce school district aid by an average of about 5%, though the money is intended to return to teachers and support workers through one-time stipends. The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education addressed the order during a meeting on Tuesday only for informational purposes. Whether or not Landry’s order is implemented will be decided by the legislature on June 23. A two-thirds vote in favor is needed for the order to be approved. Tony Ligi, executive counsel for the Department of Education, said ballots had gone out to House and Senate members and that there would be a 15-day period for them to come back. The stipends would not cover every school employee who has historically been included in state pay raises or stipends. Therapy specialists, counselors, principals, assistant principals, other school administrators, central office certificated administrators, school nurses and employees on sabbatical are not included in the executive order. The Minimum Foundation Program is the state’s main public school funding formula and helps pay for school district operations across Louisiana. Landry’s executive order seeks to reduce the fiscal year 2026-27 MFP appropriation in House Bill 1 by $168 million from “non-instructional dollars.” The money would be used to fund $2,000 stipends for classroom teachers and $1,000 stipends for support staff, plus employer retirement contributions. The order directs the Department of Education, in consultation with BESE, to identify the allocations from which the reduction would be made. Security, transportation and food service are considered non-instructional costs, but the executive order specifically requires them to remain intact. Instead, school systems should use unassigned fund balances to replace reduced allocations, Beth Scioneaux, the department’s financial lead, told the board. She described an unassigned fund balance as money that has not been formally committed to a specific expense. “It is a good thing to have a fund balance,” Scioneaux said. She added that districts need money available for hurricanes, disaster recovery and unexpected equipment needs, and that the department considers a fund balance of about 7.5% of a district’s total budget a best practice. If lawmakers approve the reduction, the state treasurer would move the $168 million out of the program’s appropriation and into the overcollections fund. At that point, the Department of Education would lose direct access to the money and would have to seek spending authority through the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget. The committee’s first scheduled meeting for the year is Aug. 13, though officials said it is not yet clear whether that would be the meeting where the department seeks authority to access the stipend money. Some allocations would not be affected by the reduction, including International Associate Teacher stipends, the Career Development Fund, High Cost Services and mentor stipends, which are paid separately under their own schedules. Education officials also noted that the current program resolution does not define “non-instructional” for purposes of the formula. Areas to be reviewed include general administration, such as school board and superintendent costs; school administration, business services, warehousing, procurement, reporting, and operation and maintenance. School systems will ultimately have to make budget adjustments based on the reduced MFP payments if the Legislature approves the governor’s order. ...read more read less