FOR RELEASE: May 2, 2023
|
With this 2023-24 budget, New York has reached a remarkable milestone. The foundation aid formula, first created in 2007 and intended to provide a sound basic education for all students, is fully funded for the first time. This achievement cannot be overstated and must not be overlooked. This budget supported by Governor Hochul and the Legislature provides a $3 billion increase in school aid for New York school districts. The budget also includes an important safeguard to ensure that no district will receive less than a 3% minimum foundation aid increase. And the Legislature’s decision not to add new restrictions to the use of foundation aid is welcome.School boards deeply appreciate the flexible financial support that foundation aid provides for public education at a time of pressing challenges that vary from district to district. We are also pleased to see full funding continued for expense-based aids that support activities including student transportation, building projects, BOCES services and special education. We are disappointed, however, that the budget does not include funding to begin the process of updating the foundation aid formula and the decades-old data that drives it. The circumstances of our schools and our students do not stand still, and the time that it has taken to see the formula fully enacted and fully funded has ensured that it already needs adjustments. But in the absence of dedicated state funding for this important work, NYSSBA and our colleagues with the New York State Educational Conference Board stand ready to engage with education stakeholders, including the State Education Department, to see that crucial formula updates and refinements can move forward. While we were also disappointed that the budget does not include universal school meals for all students, we do recognize and appreciate that added funding will enable school districts to significantly expand access to healthy school meals, providing a crucial nutritional safety net for students who could otherwise go hungry. This budget will provide enough additional state money to fully subsidize meals in many low-income schools, reduce the local cost share of subsidized meals in many schools, and encourage more schools to participate in the federal "Community Eligibility Program," which expands free meal access in schools. Also among the laudable accomplishments included in this budget and supported by NYSSBA are $150 million in additional pre-kindergarten funding, $20 million to expand P-TECH programs for high school students, and extension of a waiver of the public retiree earnings cap, which enables retirees to return to school district work without potentially reducing their pensions. Further disappointments on our part include authorization for the reissuance of 22 "zombie" school charters that had been revoked, including 14 charters in New York City, and rejection of a proposed ban on flavored tobacco. But overall, the 2023-24 budget is a very good one for students and their futures. NYSSBA is proud that New York lawmakers continue to make public education a priority for our state, and we look forward to continuing to work together to sustain our progress. |