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HB 5346WEST VIRGINIASession 2026State Billdead
Did Not Advance

West Virginia creates School Aid Formula Study Commission to evaluate public school funding options

Original title: Creating the school aid formula study commission

Last action · February 9, 2026: To House EducationSponsors: Mike Pushkin and 8 others

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓
Introduced
Committee
Floor Vote
Passed
Law

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What This Bill Proposed

Official description

Creating the school aid formula study commission

Why it matters

The measure sets up a formal state body with a July 1, 2028 reporting deadline to evaluate how public schools are funded, potentially altering the allocation of state education dollars across rural and urban districts.

Background
  • West Virginia's public education system relies on a state aid formula designed to distribute financial support equitably among county school districts. context

Who It Would Have Affected

Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

Public school students and parents

Their educational funding mechanisms and school stability may change based on the commission's recommendations for the school aid formula.

Directly affected

State teachers and school personnel

Represented on the commission and subject to future funding modifications that could impact staffing, compensation, and school operations.

Directly affected

County school boards

Represented by both urban and rural school board members on the commission, and subject to any future overhaul of the state aid distribution formula.

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the purpose of the School Aid Formula Study Commission?
The commission is directed to investigate public school funding options and make specific recommendations on how to revise the or adopt another funding approach.
When must the commission report its findings to the Legislature?
The commission must complete its study and report its recommendations by July 1, 2028, while also providing regular updates to the .
Who serves on the study commission?
The commission includes the chairman and four members of the state school board, plus governor-appointed members representing school funding experts, teachers, school personnel, urban and rural school boards, county commissions, parents, charter schools, and the school building authority.

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

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Where This Stands

This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in House committee.

Procedural history

4 actions
  1. Feb 9, 2026HouseCommittee
    To House Education
  2. Feb 9, 2026HouseIntroduced
    Introduced in House
  3. Feb 9, 2026HouseCommittee
    To Education then Finance
  4. Feb 9, 2026HouseIntroduced
    Filed for introduction

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

View official text →

Lobbying Activity

No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.

Full breakdown

Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.

Sponsors

Mike PushkinHouse · District 54DemocraticPrimary sponsor
Anitra HamiltonHouse · District 81DemocraticSponsor
John WilliamsHouse · District 80DemocraticSponsor
Evan HansenHouse · District 79DemocraticSponsor
Hollis LewisHouse · District 57DemocraticSponsor
Show 4 more sponsors
Rick GarciaHouse · District 76DemocraticSponsor
Kayla YoungHouse · District 56DemocraticSponsor
Shawn FluhartyHouse · District 5DemocraticSponsor
Sean HornbuckleHouse · District 25DemocraticSponsor

Discoveries

1 pattern noticed across the record

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift90% confidence

Legislative focus on modernization of school funding

The bill highlights recent challenges such as declining enrollment, the COVID-19 pandemic, and resource shifts to private and homeschooling as driving factors for re-evaluating the decades-old school funding formula.

School Aid Formula Study Commission

Connected Entities

Joint Committee on Government and Finance, School Aid Formula Study Commission, Attorney General and 1 more
OrganizationJoint Committee on Government and Finance“Legislative committee to receive regular updates.”Map →
OrganizationSchool Aid Formula Study Commission“The newly created commission to study school funding.”Map →
OrganizationAttorney General“State agency tasked with providing legal assistance upon request.”Map →
OrganizationSchool Building Authority“Represented on the study commission.”Map →

Sources

Open source document

www.wvlegislature.gov

Analysis Score

0–100
  • Significance20
    Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 60)
  • Controversy25
    Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
  • Entertainment5
    Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
  • Buzz30
    Current news / social attention level

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