Educators and Republican lawmakers on Long Island are pushing back against the education proposals in Gov. Kathy Hochul's proposed 2024-2025 budget, which includes cuts for dozens of school districts.
Hochul’s proposed budget increases funding for about two-thirds of districts on the island, but more than 40 districts would face cuts — some over 10%. Hochul wants to change the formula used to allocate state aid, and throw out a provision that ensures school districts get at least as much money as the year before.
“Gov. Hochul’s proposed budget is a choice to underfund our schools and it’s shameful,” state Sen. Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk) said at a rally alongside members of the Three Village Central school district on Thursday.
"We pay a tremendous amount of money, as we all know, in property taxes," Palumbo said. "Every dollar that comes from the state is a subsidy to our property taxes and to all of us. So for every dollar that's not paid by state aid, we need to make up the difference because we need to fully fund our schools."
He criticized the governor for earmarking state aid to help New York City care for an influx of migrants from the southern border instead of a bigger increase for schools.
The proposed cuts in Hochul's $35 billion education budget come after a spate of record increases to schools, but the state is set to run out of $500 million this year in federal school aid from pandemic relief packages.
Assemblyman Charles Lavine (D-Glen Cove) hit back with a statement condemning his Republican colleagues for fearmongering over the education plan.
"In the 20 years that I have played a role in negotiating New York's budgets, I have learned that our final adopted state budget will provide the necessary funding to support our Long Island public schools, which happen to be the best in the world," Lavine said.
The legislature typically has until April 1 to pass the state's annual budget.
A spokesperson for the governor said her proposed budget includes "record" education funding including "$5 billion in school aid for Long Island, an increase of nearly $1.4 billion since Gov. Hochul took office."
This story has been updated.
