Shumlin signs universal early education bill

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Gov. Peter Shumlin has signed into law a bill calling for every 3- and 4-year-old in Vermont to have access to at least 10 hours a week of publicly funded, pre-kindergarten education.

Backers of the bill say it will add about $10 million a year in costs to the state's Education Fund by 2021. But they say the measure will save much more in the long run because many of the children will be given a good enough educational start that special education and corrections costs will be reduced.

The bill contains a provision allowing public money to follow a child from his or her home school district to another one, for example, where a parent works.

Some critics of the measure say they oppose that provision.

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