Some LI school districts could lose state aid under Hochul's proposed budget

Dozens of Long Island school districts face potential losses of state financial aid during the 2024-25 fiscal year, under a proposed budget announced Tuesday by Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Newsday review finds. 

Details of the governor's plan, which includes nearly $35 billion in school assistance statewide, were released in Albany late Tuesday. 

Some local school leaders remained hopeful Wednesday that the State Legislature will restore funding for the upcoming school year.

A Newsday analysis found that while at least 77 districts will gain more than $182 million in state assistance under the proposal, 44 districts will lose state aid in the coming year — including at least 18 districts facing cuts above 10%. 

"The proposed cut is very disappointing, but we remain hopeful that the legislature will restore the funding we need to continue to provide high quality education to East Hampton students,” Superintendent Adam Fine said.

The East End district faces a cut of more than 20% in state aid.

Newsday's review of plans for local districts drew on statewide data generated by the state Education Department. Those computerized lists, known as "runs," provide breakdowns for distribution of nearly $5 billion in total proposed aid for Long Island.

"We are very happy that the governor has recognized the shortfall in funding we have experienced in past years and is bringing us up to the levels enjoyed by other districts," said Wayne Loper, superintendent of the Valley Stream Central High School District, where a nearly 12% increase is proposed.

Focus on 'hold harmless' provision

The reductions would be a result of Hochul’s proposal this week to end to the provision in state aid called "hold harmless," which has been in existence for decades. That provision has meant school districts could depend on getting at least as much school aid as in the previous year.

State Budget Director Blake Washington told Newsday that after increasing school aid by $7 billion over the last three years, with an additional $13 billion increase in federal aid during the same period, it’s now time for the state to provide a more sustainable level of funding. The change is needed to make sure high-needs schools get the funding they need, he said.

The Hochul administration made the decision based on the reserves and surpluses of many moderate- and lower-needs school districts.

Lawmakers are sure to fight not only for spending increases, but also to maintain "hold harmless,” Republicans and Democrats said.

Increasing school aid is traditionally a top priority of state legislators and their constituents, especially in suburbs such as those on Long Island and particularly in election years. Ending the hold-harmless provision faces obstacles beyond arguments over the proposal’s merits.

“The political realities are that this has been so much a part of the financial planning of the districts and the political priorities of the legislators who represent them that it’s hard to imagine the Senate and the Assembly going along,” said Lawrence Levy, executive dean of Hofstra University’s National Center for Suburban Studies.

Worries about cuts to foundation aid

The proposed cutbacks come after three years of large appropriations for the Nassau-Suffolk region, including a record $771 million increase in state financial aid approved for this school year. An infusion of $500 million in federal pandemic aid for local schools will dry up this year.

Bob Vecchio, executive director of the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association, said Wednesday that a closer look into the governor's proposal showed even more “devastating” cuts to foundation aid for many Island districts.

The state's foundation aid formula includes factors such as enrollment and the local community's wealth. The hold harmless provision has been a part of how foundation aid has been applied since it was established in 2007, state education advocates said.

“It’s an excess of $40 million in aid lost," Vecchio said. "It will be nearly impossible for some of these districts to make up the difference."

The New York State School Boards Association said the governor's proposal appears to "pull back from the substantial progress New York has made with Foundation Aid funding."

Tim Hearney, president of the Suffolk County School Superintendents Association, said that in Suffolk alone, it looks like about $33 million in lost foundation aid. But, it’s very early in the process, he cautioned.

Such a loss could “possibly have an impact on programs and eventually students,” said Hearney, who is also superintendent of the Bayport-Blue Point district. However, “there needs to be so much more information gathered and our hope is that there will be some adjustments made going forward as we are planning for our budgets.”

Educators across the Island said this type of aid is considered crucial for future operations of their school systems.

The Lawrence district stands to lose up to 38% in foundation aid, the largest percentage cut of any district in Nassau County, school officials there said.

"The district sees no rationale in cutting funding to a population of high-needs students," Superintendent Ann Pedersen said Wednesday. "We do realize ... the governor's numbers are not final. We hope that our state legislators do the right thing by restoring the foundation aid the governor has misguidedly taken away from our students."