FOR RELEASE: January 20, 2026
The New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA) is pleased that Gov. Hochul’s proposed state budget fully funds Foundation Aid, expense-based aids and the existing universal school meals program. In addition, we are hopeful that the funding boosts for universal pre-kindergarten will help allow all districts to successfully open and grow those important programs. These are all high priority areas for school leadership teams and we thank the governor for recognizing their importance.
There are a few areas in which the budget falls short, however, and NYSSBA looks forward to working with the governor and state lawmakers as budget negotiations progress.
In particular, while we appreciate that the governor recognizes that all school districts face increasing costs, a 1% minimum increase falls short for too many districts and does not keep pace with expenses such as energy, contractual obligations, and health insurance. The budget also does not address the woefully outdated Foundation Aid formula. The governor and legislature put in place a number of meaningful updates to the formula last year, but more updates are needed to ensure the formula meets the needs of all students in the state.
Finally, until or unless lawmakers repeal or significantly alter the zero emission bus requirement, NYSSBA would also like to see the state budget provide school districts with additional support, resources and reforms to meet the many financial and logistical hurdles required to transition school bus fleets to all electric vehicles.