Priority 5: Opposing Unfunded Mandates

Ephrata School Board Statement:

The Ephrata School District Board of Directors strongly believes that high expectations for student learning must be matched by adequate resources and support. As such, we oppose the imposition of unfunded or underfunded mandates that place significant financial and operational burdens on local school districts without providing the necessary funding to implement them effectively.

While we recognize the important role of state and federal policy in shaping public education, mandates that require districts to expand services, change instructional practices or meet new compliance standards - without providing sufficient funding - divert limited local resources away from existing priorities and student needs.

Unfunded mandates can force school boards to make difficult trade-offs, reduce programs or stretch already strained budgets. This undermines our ability to maintain high-quality instruction, support staff and students effectively and remain responsive to our community.

The Ephrata School District is committed to responsible stewardship of public funds and to ensuring that every dollar spent serves the best interests of students. We will make it a legislative priority to advocate for fully funded policies and to push back on mandates that shift financial responsibility to local districts without accompanying resources.

We will call on our legislative partners to collaborate with local districts and ensure that any new requirements are accompanied by the funding necessary to implement them with fidelity and success.