Prepared by Kathy Wilson

The ECS Task Force released its final report on January 23.  The report addresses the ECS grant itself, state funding for school choice programs, and state funding for special education. 

With respect to ECS, it makes no specific recommendations for increased funding due to the state's current budget constraints, nor does it make specific, quantitative recommendations for changes in ECS formula components.  It does, however, make broad policy recommendations for change, both in the formula itself and in the way its funding is handled, and it provides a model demonstrating how those changes might affect the allocation of ECS grant money among the 169 towns.  Many of the components of this model formula are arbitrary and/or were manipulated to produce a total ECS grant equal to the target amount ($2.7 billion) generated by the formula currently in law.  That target amount is currently underfunded by $700 million. 

The broad policy recommendations are as follows:

1. Eliminate uncertainty for towns:  Establish a target for the grant and criteria to maintain it over a period of year.  The report does not specify a target, how that target should be determined, or what sort of criteria should be used to maintain it.

2. Change town wealth calculations: Give greater weight in the formula to income and use Median Household Income as its sole measure.  Use the U.S. Census Bureau's annual American Community Survey as the source for income data rather than the decennial census.  Simplify the calculation of property wealth. 

3. Use a new measure of student need:  Use eligibility for Free or Reduced Price Lunch as the sole measure of student need, rather than Title I and English Language Learner status.

4. Drive more money to Alliance Districts:  Increase the target amount for these 30 lowest performing districts by 4%. The report does not specify whether this should be done by manipulating the formula or by simply adding 4% to each of these districts' grants.

5.  Drive more money to needier districts:  Freeze grants to wealthier towns.  The report provides no criteria for what constitutes a needy or wealthy town.

6.  Provide incentives for improvement:  Reserve part of the grant for low-performing districts to be awarded for improved performance and establishment of best practices.

7.  Raise the Foundation:  Increase the amount and consider a study to determine the best method for setting it in the future.

With respect to school choice programs and special education, the task force does recommend specific funding increases.  It calls for increased funding for non-Sheff host magnet schools, for agriscience programs, for 100% state funding of state-agency-placed special education students, and for a revamped and increased excess cost grant. 

Many of the task force's recommendations are consistent with the League's School Finance position and could be supported in concept, but we await the release of the governor's budget and the raising of Education Committee bills to see whether any of them find their way into actual legislation this session.

The Bills:

• HB 5557, PA 12-104, became law 5/23 and contains about $100 million in new spending for education.
  
• SB 25, PA 12-189, became law 5/30 and provides $10 million in bonding for new education-related projects.
  
• SB 458, PA-116, became law 5/29 and fleshes out details of the education reform package.
  

The Provisions:

• ECS: $50 million funds an overall increase averaging 2.3%. 30 low performing districts ("alliance districts") get larger increases conditioned on their use of those dollars to improve student achievement. 33 wealthy towns get no increase. 
  
• Early Childhood: $9.8 million (plus $6 million in bond funds) for 1,000 new PreK slots, an early childhood quality rating system, and professional development.
  
• K-3 reading: $2.7 million to expand the K-3 reading assessment framework, including a new intensive program in 5 selected schools, a new state-wide reading plan and reading assessments, and professional development.
  
• Commissioner's Network: $7.5 million for intensive intervention in 2 to 3 of the state's lowest performing schools in FY '13, a total of 25 such schools by the end of FY '14. The new law gives the state greater authority to implement turnaround plans than existed under previous law.
  
• Services for Families: $1.9 million for 10 family resource centers and $1.3 million for 20 new or expanded school-based health clinics in the 30 lowest performing school districts.
  
• School Choice: $8.1 million to increase the state charter school grant from the present $9,400 to $10,500, with mandated increases to $11,000 in FY '14 and $11,500 in FY '15. $7 million to increase per pupil grant amounts for non-Sheff magnet schools. $4 million for the Sheff Settlement. $1.4 million to increase the per pupil entitlement for Vo-Ag schools.
  
• Talent Development: $3.7 million for Talent Development, most of which goes to establish a teacher evaluation and support pilot program in 8 to 10 districts. An additional $4 million is carried forward from FY '12 for talent development. The bill requires annual performance reviews based on a new framework adopted earlier this year by the state board of education due to be finalized by 7/1, strengthens professional development requirements, and modifies the state tenure statute.
  
• Chart of Accounts: $4 million in bond funding is provided for the development of a new, uniform system of accounting for school expenditures. In FY '15 all districts must implement the common chart of accounts and submit annual financial reports, which is expected to result in substantial cost at the local level.
  
• Other Initiatives: $2.4 million for a variety of other initiatives aimed at supporting innovation and improving college readiness, including a new science program and wraparound services for the 10 lowest achieving school districts, a school health coordinator pilot, technical assistance for regional cooperation, grants for new or replicated schools, and a new Bridges to Success program.
  
• The education bill also mandates a minimum 20 minutes of exercise per school day for all students in grades K-5, requires boards of education to post information about school choice programs on their websites, improves state support for local charter schools in low performing districts beginning in FY '14, and requires towns to budget as much for education in FY '13 as they did in FY '12, with some exceptions for enrollment declines, school closings, and documented savings from increased efficiency.
  

More Information
CGA Website: http://www.cga.ct.gov/. Type in the bill number in the window at the top of the page.  The fiscal notes and bill analyses are particularly helpful.

An excellent summary and comparison between current law and the education reform package is available at http://www.jblei.com/documents/notes/notes/education_comparison.pdf. 

Click below to download this LWVCT report in Word: