Republican Governor Sam Brownback has signed a $4.1 billion plan to overhaul Kansas' school funding system.
The governor signed the bill into law Wednesday during a private ceremony in the presence of GOP leaders.
It scraps the current formula for determining state aid and replaces it with "block grants" to school districts based on their current aid. The grant system will be in place for two years while the Legislature develops a new formula.
The state's 286 school districts lose $51 million in aid they expected to receive for the current school year under the plan. The bill has been lauded by the conservatives and business groups. Brownback said in a statement that the plan will give more direct spending control to officials closest to the classroom.
