Schools Stand To Get Millions More In State Aid In Baker Budget

Gov. Charlie Baker's proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year includes full funding of the first year of an overhauled formula that determines how much state aid school districts get, a law that has already been put on hold once due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Baker's $45.6 billion FY22 budget includes $246.3 million in new funding for the Student Opportunity Act, increasing Chapter 70 aid by $197.7 million, or 3.7 percent.

That money is meant to help local districts with costs associated with low-income students, special education services, English language learners, guidance and psychological services and employee health benefits.

The law also requires districts to submit a plan to the state on how they would use the extra funds to help close opportunity gaps.

The increased Chapter 70 aid is significantly less than the $303 million proposed in Baker's FY21 budget — funding that never materialized as the pandemic put a strain on state revenues. This year's proposed number is lower due to lower inflation and a statewide enrollment decline of 3.26 percent, including a decline of more than 5 percent in 29 districts, the Department of Education said.

Even with fewer students attending public schools amid the pandemic, a provision in the formula assures districts will not receive less than they did in FY21 plus $30 per pupil.

The Student Opportunity Act, passed into law in 2019, maps out a path to infusing $1.5 billion into districts over seven years, revamping the formula that determined Chapter 70 funds. It was hailed by lawmakers and education advocates as a needed investment into bridging the inequity gap in school funding.

But funding was scrapped for what would have been its first year due to the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, schools were level-funded under the old formula as federal funding backed costs associated with the coronavirus, like personal protective equipment, hand sanitizer and remote learning infrastructure.