Senate committee approves change in SD school aid

(AP) — A South Dakota Senate committee has approved a bill aimed at increasing state financial aid to school districts once the economy recovers.

The main sponsor, Sen. Dave Knudson of Sioux Falls, says the bill would more closely tie school aid with the overall health of South Dakota's budget.

South Dakota law now requires that state aid to schools will increase each year by 3 percent or the rate of inflation, whichever is less. The bill would change the law to tie state aid increases with general revenue growth. But school aid could not rise each year by more than 4 percent or the rate of inflation, whichever is greater.

An additional safeguard says school aid could never rise by more than 7 percent a year.