Download: Complete Bulletin. PDF File.

Each year, the New York State Board of Regents adopt a proposal on state aid to school districts. At their October 2006 meeting, the Board approved their 2007-08 state aid proposal that calls for an additional $1.48 billion in school aid over last year's funding level. Most of the additional funding would be targeted to school districts that educate the state's neediest children. The Regents also cautioned that the $1.48 billion increase is based on preliminary data and that when districts submit updated expenditure information by mid-November that the increase in school aid that they are seeking will likely be $1.7 billion.

The centerpiece of the Regents' proposal is a multi-year plan to establish a foundation aid formula that would replace 31 separate aid categories. 1 Regent Tallon, the Chair of the Subcommittee on State Aid, informed the Board of Regents just prior to their approval that this will be the fourth consecutive year that the Regents have called for a foundation aid formula. Similar to last year's proposal, Regent Tallon explained that the foundation aid amount would be adjusted both for student need and regional cost. Regent Tallon also reported that every district in the state would receive a minimum increase of 2% under the foundation aid formula to recognize that all districts are experiencing increasing costs.

Essentially the foundation aid formula would calculate state aid according to the following formula:

District's State Aid = (Foundation Cost x Pupil Need x Regional Cost Index) - Expected Local Share

The foundation cost is determined based on the cost of educating an average student in a "successful school district," defined as a district that had on average 80 percent or more of their students passing seven state examinations, two at the elementary level and five at the high school level, for three consecutive years. Over 450 school districts meet this definition up from 300 districts three years ago.

The foundation cost is then adjusted for pupil need to recognize the added cost of educating students living in poverty and would also be adjusted for regional cost index to generate additional funds to school districts where wages and the cost of living are higher. This amount would be subtracted from an expected local share to calculate a state aid amount. The local share would be based on a district's tax base and an expected local tax rate.

The following chart depicts the state aid per pupil under both the current funding level and the funding level proposed by the Board of Regents for the 2007-08 school year by the type of district.

Distribution of Computerized Aid Per Enrolled Pupil

Other Components of the Regents' Proposal

• A new simplified special education funding formula that would be based on the foundation aid formula, but would apply an additional weighting to reflect the greater cost of educating children with disabilities.
• A $108 million increase in school aid for early childhood education.
• BOCES Aid and Transportation Aid would increase based on the current law.
• Library materials aid would increase from $19 million to $27 million, an increase of 42%.

Following the November elections, the Regents will present their proposal to the Governor-elect and urge him to include the additional education funding in the 2007-08 Executive Budget that will likely be presented early in February. The Regents will also advocate their proposal to the Legislature next year.

BKB/sh/59572

__________________________

1 The following 31 aid categories would be replaced by the new foundation formula: Comprehensive Operating Aid, Computer Hardware Aid, Early Grade Class Size Reduction, Educationally Related Support Services Aid, Enrollment Adjustment Aid, Extraordinary Needs Aid, Flex Aid, Gifted and Talented Aid, High Tax Aid, Minor Maintenance and Repair Aid, Operating Aid, Operating Growth Aid, Operating Standards Aid, Operating Reorganization Incentive Aid, Small City Aid, Sound Basic Education Aid, Summer School Aid, Supplemental Extraordinary Needs Aid, Tax Effort Aid, Tax Equalization Aid, Tax Limitation Aid, Teacher Support Aid, Transition Adjustment Factor, Categorical Reading Programs, CVEEB, Fort Drum Aid, Improving Pupil Performance Grants, Magnet Schools Aid, Shared Services Savings Incentive, Tuition Adjustment Aid, Urban-Suburban Transfer Aid.

Download: Complete Bulletin. PDF File.