POLITICS
The special session ended. Almost nothing is law yet.
4 min read · 11 min watch
Mara Ellison · August 14, 2026
The short version
Lawmakers agreed on new assessment rates but adjourned without settling how to backfill school districts. Two bills passed; the money question did not.
Why it matters
School district budgets are built in the fall. Without a backfill decision, districts either plan for cuts or plan on a promise.
What changed
The assessment rate for residential property drops for one year. A proposed permanent cap was pulled the night before adjournment.
Where things stand
Signed: the one-year rate. Unresolved: the backfill, the cap, and whether any of it survives a November ballot measure.
What happens next
The governor has ten days to sign. District budget hearings begin the second week of September.
WatchWatch Mara explain it — 5:18