SF 73: State-Federal Partnership Schools
2007 General Session

Sponsor: Select Committee on Tribal Relations

SF 73 would have authorized agreements between Wyoming and the federal government to establish state-federal partnership school districts in Wyoming. Such agreements would have allowed partnership school districts on the Wind River Indian Reservation to be incorporated into the state school system, and partnership schools would have been included in Wyoming’s system of school finance, state retirement and school building maintenance programs. State financial support for partnership schools would have been reduced by any federal revenue that was available to partnership schools.

Partnership school districts would have been required to follow uniform state educational program requirements and student performance, accountability and high school graduation requirements.

This bill was offered as a way to more permanently solve ongoing funding problems at St. Stephens School (near Riverton), which is the only federally funded school (through the Bureau of Indian Affairs) on the Wind River Indian Reservation. The state currently supplements funding for the school on an annual basis (see SF 72).

The Senate Committee of the Whole defeated SF 73, 14-15 (1 excused). The votes listed below are the Senate Committee of the Whole votes. A YES vote means the senator supported allowing a federally-funded school on the Wind River Indian Reservation to become part of Wyoming’s public school system and to receive state funding through the state’s school finance model. A NO vote means the senator did not support this type of state-federal partnership school district.

INTRODUCED