By Dorie Turner / Beacon Special

Georgia schools are bracing for another tough year of furloughs, layoffs and crowded classes as state lawmakers reconvene under the Gold Dome for the 2010 legislative session.

Some of the policies put into place in recent years to improve education — such as class size limits and spending requirements — could go out the window for at least three years as legislators try to cut at least $1 billion from this year’s budget. More could be cut for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

“This is the year we need to try to help public education,’’ said House Education Committee Chairman Brooks Coleman (R-Duluth). “We need to try to find ways to help public education survive.’’

State policies require schools to spend 65 percent of their budgets on classroom instruction and to keep classes to fewer than about 30 students, depending on the grade and subject. Both those measures would be relaxed under legislation proposed by state lawmakers, leaving it up to each school district to decide how to spend their limited funding.

Even so, school administrators are worried about how much lawmakers will have to cut from education this year — estimated at about $300 million. Last year, schools took a 3 percent cut — or about $275 million — when all other departments and agencies were cut at least 5 percent.

And schools had millions in federal stimulus money to help stave off widespread layoffs and deep program cuts.

Schools may not be as fortunate this year.

“It’s going to be ugly,’’ said Angela Palm, director of policy for the Georgia School Boards Association. “I think we’re getting to the point where school systems are going to have to start cutting personnel. The budget cuts will become more and more apparent to parents of children.’’

School districts may get some extra time to sign contracts with teachers and administrators. Most districts must have the contracts done by April 15, but Coleman said he wants to give schools at least another month so that lawmakers have a chance to pass a budget first.

Lawmakers also want to make sure the poorest school districts are getting most of the money set aside for districts that don’t have smaller tax bases than those in suburban Atlanta.

Despite the sputtering economy, some are looking to make changes in Georgia education law outside the budget — from bullying to cheating on tests.

One bill comes after the mother of an 11-year-old in DeKalb County student said her son killed himself in April because of merciless teasing. The legislation would expand the current bullying law to include students in grades kindergarten through fifth grade, would allow administrators to transfer a bully to another school after the first incident — rather than the third — and would make it a crime for principals to knowingly not report a bullying issue to police.

“The state’s current bullying law is woefully inadequate,’’ said bill sponsor Rep. Mike Jacobs (R-Atlanta).

And members of the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement are hoping to introduce a bill that would make it a crime for educators to cheat on standardized tests. That push comes after a statewide audit in June showed that someone changed answers on students’ state math tests in 2008 at four elementary schools.