What you need to know about education funding proposed in Gov. Shapiro’s budget

Delivering his first budget address after a historic ruling finding Pennsylvania’s school funding unconstitutional, Gov. Josh Shapiro said his plan reflected a “significant down payment” toward a solution.

But while the proposal unveiled by the Democratic governor Tuesday would increase money for public schools, it’s less than what education advocates had sought. Plaintiffs who won the school funding case said the proposal “takes a step backwards,” including by pulling back on a program that targeted money to the poorest districts.

Here’s a breakdown of what Shapiro is proposing for K-12 education:

Shapiro’s budget includes an additional $567 million in basic education funding, the state’s main form of aid to its 500 school districts. The money would be distributed through Pennsylvania’s school funding formula, which accounts for the wealth of a district and special needs, such as English-language learners.

The proposal amounts to a 7.8% increase over this year’s spending — which “keeps up with general inflation but does little more,” according to the left-leaning Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center. (Last year, former Gov. Tom Wolf and lawmakers increased basic education funding to all districts by $525 million.)

Shapiro didn’t announce new steps to target funding to low-wealth communities. Because Pennsylvania’s funding formula only applies to a portion of its education spending — meaning most state aid isn’t distributed based on student or district needs — the state over the last two years has set additional money aside for the 100 poorest districts, intended to help close gaps with wealthier communities.

Democratic lawmakers had called for an increase this year in the so-called Level Up program, which the state spent $225 million on last year. Shapiro didn’t include any new money for it.

The absence of a Level Up supplement is “disappointing and puzzling,” said Susan Spicka of Education Voters PA, noting the program “helps to close the funding gaps that hurt our most vulnerable students and are at the heart of Pennsylvania’s unconstitutional school funding system.”

Lawyers for the school districts, parents, and organizations that sued the state in the funding case said the proposal “does not do enough to meet the standard set by our state constitution and the urgency of this moment.”

“This moment calls for more,” the Public Interest Law Center, the Education Law Center, and the O’Melveny & Myers law firm said in a statement.

Shapiro’s budget would allot $100 million for remediating environmental hazards in schools — an issue that has plagued districts, including Philadelphia, where children were relocated this week from Building 21, a West Oak Lane high school, due to damaged asbestos.

In his speech, Shapiro pledged to set aside $100 million a year for five years for school repairs. It wasn’t clear how the money would be distributed; the governor’s proposal described the funding as a matching grant program.

The governor also proposed an ongoing investment in mental health counselors in schools — an initiative he called for funding at $100 million annually over five years. That money isn’t new, but is shifted from a grant that schools received last year.

Shapiro’s budget also includes more than $39 million to continue free breakfast for all public school students.

Commonwealth Court Judge Renee Cohn Jubelirer’s decision finding Pennsylvania’s school funding unconstitutional was “a call to action,” Shapiro said. While theoretically, an appeal is still possible, he said, “all indications are that Judge Jubelirer’s ruling will stand.”

Shapiro said he had met with leading lawmakers of both parties, and “it’s fair to report that we’re all prepared to work together to find a comprehensive solution,” though “it cannot be fixed overnight.”

The governor acknowledged that the court had found Pennsylvania’s funding system deficient not just because schools don’t have enough money but also because it’s inequitably distributed.

“We must approach this responsibility with hope and ambition — because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us to do right by our kids, to fund our schools, and to empower parents to put their kids in the best position for them to succeed,” he said.

Plaintiffs’ lawyers said they would work with Shapiro and lawmakers to enact a budget “that makes a down payment towards a constitutionally compliant system, and begins a multiyear plan to provide adequate funding for all students and schools.”

Shapiro’s proposal represents a starting point for budget negotiations, said State Sen. Vincent Hughes, a Democrat representing part of Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties.

Hughes, who had called for a $3 billion increase in education funding, said Democrats will press for more funding over the coming months, including to increase equity. Areas where dollars could be added, he said, include reimbursing districts for students who attend charter schools — a program that would particularly benefit Philadelphia and other urban districts — and reinstating the Level Up funding.

Unlike Wolf’s budget proposals, which included large education increases that Republicans rejected, Shapiro’s plan represents a “new political dynamic,” Hughes said. He noted that Pennsylvania’s House is now controlled by Democrats — the GOP still controls the Senate — and the state has a budget surplus.

“It’s about an opportunity to build up from what he’s offered,” Hughes said.

This article has been updated to reflect that there is no new money included for the Level Up program in this year’s proposed budget.