State leaders continue to consider a backroom budget proposal to make it easier for nonpublic schools to satisfy state Education Department guidelines to teach a curriculum that is substantially equivalent to public districts.

Multiple lawmakers Thursday said the proposal remains on the table as negotiations persist with no end in sight.

"I don't kick things off the table," Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie told reporters about the proposal Thursday. "If it's important to a constituency, if it's important to the Senate, to the governor, my own members, everything is worth a conversation."

Last week, the State Education Department urged the Legislature not to play politics with children's education in the budget and water down the regulations. The Board of Regents amended stricter standards for religious and nonpublic schools in 2022 to enforce a competent teacher instruct students in math, science, English language arts and history in the English language.

Heastie has not spoken out against changing the education policy, and said he's open to ongoing discussions — even though the Board of Regents adopts education policy separately from the Legislature.

"I'm not agreeing to anything [but] it's always worth the respect of a conversation," the speaker said.

The debate often surfaces as a political bargaining chip during budget talks as top Democrats consider the change to boost their support in powerful voting blocs of Orthodox Jewish voters.

Senate leaders conferenced the idea for hours Thursday, and have posed greater pushback to the proposal.

Senate Finance Committee chair Liz Krueger is strongly against changing the regulations, arguing only a small number of schools have struggled to meet the stricter guidelines and risk losing government funding.

"I continue to be opposed to any changes in the current regulations," Krueger said in a statement to Spectrum News 1. "There is only a very small number of yeshivas who are struggling to meet these standards within a much larger universe of Jewish, other religious and independent private schools who have no problem with the existing standards for providing substantially equivalent education to hundreds of thousands of children. This cannot be a political debate — we must be focused on ensuring all children are provided a sound basic education as guaranteed by our constitution.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul said she's yet to see language to change the standards, but wouldn't say where she stands on the issue.

"I'm not going to tell you, because that's not how you negotiate," Hochul told reporters Thursday. "That's not how I negotiate for the people of New York by giving out little bits and pieces."

SED is expected to release a report in June announcing a few hundred schools that have failed to meet the bolstered substantial equivalency regulations.

Assemblyman Harvey Epstein said it's inappropriate for the Legislature to make the change so soon — especially before the department releases its report.

"We've already empowered the State Education Department to have oversight," Epstein said. "Obviously, we want every kid in this state to learn to read and write, especially in English, so I'm not sure why it's coming up at this time."

Assembly Education Committee chair Michael Benedetto declined to comment. Senate Education Committee chair Shelley Mayer did not return multiple requests for comment.

The state Association of Independent Schools and Council of Catholic School Superintendents sent memos to lawmakers opposing making last-minute changes to the standards behind closed doors.

The Young Advocates For Fair Education continue to pressure lawmakers to stay out of the debate, adding SED fought for years to get the regulations approved, which were upheld in court.

"The state has addressed the issue," YAFFED Executive Director Adina Mermelstein Konikoff said. "State Ed is working on it and really, the elected officials should stay out of it now."

SED has said substantial equivalency is based on teaching the core subjects required by state law, and the regulations ensure students attending nonpublic schools across the state have access to instruction that is substantially equivalent to public school students.