ASBO released the following statement from Executive Director Brian Cechnicki:

 

ASBO New York, after a detailed review of one of the most complicated and convoluted state aid proposals in recent memory, has serious concerns that Governor Andrew Cuomo's proposed 2021-2022 budget would have long term negative implications for school districts throughout the state. 

 

While it is welcome that $3.8 billion in federal funding will be available to school districts as a part of this budget, much of this funding is used to backfill $2 billion in state education reductions elsewhere in the proposal. Using these federal funds, allocated to school districts by Congress, to balance the state's budget as the governor proposes ignores lessons we should have learned during the last recession and sets the stage for a Gap Elimination Adjustment (GEA) 2.0. 

 

Between 2009 and 2011, the state cut aid to schools and backfilled those cuts with federal American Recovery and Reinvestment (ARRA) funding; when those federal dollars expired, districts faced a $2.5 billion reduction in state aid that took five years to fully restore. This year's proposal is a ghost of the past that school districts are all too familiar with, as they are still dealing with the programmatic fallout from those cuts. 

 

The 2021-2022 Executive Budget proposal would eliminate reimbursement aids to school districts, consolidating these aids into a single block grant. This single block grant would no longer reimburse districts for costs incurred for things such as the utilization of services provided by Boards of Cooperative Educational Services or pupil transportation. Instead, state aid for these expenses would be capped at 2021-2022 levels less a $700 million cut backfilled for the current year with federal dollars. 

 

This cut-and-freeze would decimate important BOCES special education and career and technical education (CTE) programs, and create a permanent cost-shift of transportation expenses from the state onto school districts. We oppose this "services aid" proposal in its entirety. 

 

This year's executive proposal also includes a $1.3 billion reduction in School Tax Relief (STAR) Exemption payments to school districts. Initially established in 1997, the STAR Exemption program provides relief to New Yorkers by reimbursing school districts for property tax exemptions for primary residences. A reduction in STAR payments represents a backdoor cut to school aid, as districts have no control over STAR tax exemptions. Continuing this reduction in reimbursement from the state without additional federal funds in the future will lead to revenue shortfalls for schools. 

 

The GEA proved that depending on federal funds to cut aid to school districts and balance the state budget has disastrous consequences. By repeating history in this year's proposal, the governor is careening towards a fiscal cliff that experts can see on the horizon. We hope that the Legislature will consider a more fiscally sound approach to utilizing these new federal dollars, avoiding the mistakes made in the early 2010s. 

 

ASBO New York is heartened by the governor's proposal to provide aid on transportation costs school districts incurred to deliver meals and homework materials to students during last spring's school closures. We ask that this aid be extended to the 2021-2022 school year, and that "stand by" costs that districts incurred to maintain transportation capacity be reimbursed by the state. We also recommend that the regular school aid claim dates remain in effect to ensure that school districts can access these funds. 

 

ASBO supports the governor's proposed $41 million investment in an updated state aid data system. Our members work with the antiquated systems on a daily basis, and bringing these systems into the 21st Century will provide for significant administrative efficiencies and more accurate aid claiming. 

 

We would also like to thank the governor and the Division of Budget for providing clarity on their plan to fully restore payments that have been withheld from school districts for the 2020- 2021 school year. It is imperative school districts receive these funds as they continue to contend with unforeseen costs associated with the pandemic. 

 

Like New York State as a whole, school districts have faced incredible challenges over the past year. We look forward to working with Governor Cuomo and the Legislature to ensure that school districts have the resources necessary to provide a high quality education to all New Yorkers, now and in the future.