• Require county school superintendents to develop regionalization plans to merge all K-4, K-6 and K-8 districts into K-12 regional school systems, provide funding for regionalization studies, require all local school districts to coordinate both curriculum and schedules with the regional high schools to which they send students, and set up a pilot program permitting the establishment of countywide school districts.
• Require the state to administer and assume the cost of all Extraordinary Special Education placements above $55,000, replace the use of census-based reimbursement for special education costs with reimbursement based on actual pupil costs, and assign and train a cadre of Administrative Law Judges to handle all special education cases
• Create a hybrid pension plan for teachers and non-uniformed state, county and municipal employees. The plan protects those with over five years of service who have a non-forfeitable right to their current benefits. It creates a new hybrid plan for new hires and newer employees that provides a defined benefit plan on the first $40,000 of income and a “cash balance” account on income above $40,000 that pays a guaranteed 4% return or 75% of the amount the pension system earns on their account. Any excess earnings would remain within the Teachers’ Pension and Annuity Fund and the Public Employees Retirement System to reduce the unfunded liability.
• Merger of the high-cost School Employees Health Benefits Plan into the State Health Benefits Plan to be run by an expanded Plan Design Committee, and the shift of all public employees from Platinum-level healthcare plans to Gold plans with an actuarial value of no more than 80 percent upon the expiration of current contracts. Public employers would be required to offer Bronze level plans with an actuarial value of 60 percent to employees with zero premium payments.