Connecticut municipal leaders want Governor Ned Lamont and state lawmakers to increase public school funding this year and tie future increases to inflation.
The municipal leaders complain that the foundation of the state’s education cost-sharing formula for K-12 public schools has not increased since 2013.
"That has forced cities and towns across the state to increase property taxes on homeowners," New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker said. He is one of several local elected leaders who spoke at a press briefing at the state Legislative Office Building in Hartford on Tuesday.
“I’ve raised taxes pretty much every year to pay for the funding that our kids need,” Elicker said.
His city’s portion of funding for its schools increased by 60% in six years.
“Meanwhile, the state has increased its portion of ECS and alliance funding to the city of New Haven by just around 1%. Not even close to keeping up with inflation.”
The municipal leaders support a bill introduced by Senate Democrats to increase the foundation in the ECS formula, said Joe DeLong, who runs the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities.
“Don’t believe we can close this entire gap in one year. But we certainly can create a policy shift this year that shows that we are not going to continue to do it the wrong way. The way we have done it for over a decade now,” DeLong said.
The foundation in the ECS formula is currently $11,525 per student. The state distributes about $2.4 billion annually.
Lamont’s budget adjustments this year preserve a $95 million increase he signed into law last year.
