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Back to April Ed Reporter

Education Reporter
NUMBER 231 THE NEWSPAPER OF EDUCATION RIGHTS APRIL 2005

Mass. Supreme Court Balks at Raising Spending;
NY Judge Orders New $14.8 Billion for City Schools
In a surprise decision, the Massachusetts supreme court held in February that the state is meeting its constitutional duty to give students an adequate education and does not have to overhaul its school funding formula. The ruling reversed a 358-page lower-court decision. Most recent school funding decisions have sided with the plaintiffs.

The 5-2 decision was also noteworthy because the opinion was written by Chief Justice Margaret H. Marshall, who is not known for her judicial restraint. The South African-born judge was the author of the controversial opinion announcing a state constitutional right for gay couples to obtain marriage licenses, and is the wife of retired liberal New York Times columnist Anthony Lewis. However, even she concluded that judicial intervention was unjustified in the school funding case in view of the state's expenditure of $30 billion in public schools over the past decade and continued progress in narrowing pay gaps between rich and poor districts.

A 16-year-old plaintiff expressed disappointment with the ruling, grousing that "most of the classrooms don't have computers." (Education Week, 2-23-05)

44% increase for NYC 
In the same week as the Massachusetts decision, a New York State trial judge gave state legislators a May deadline to devise a plan to add $5.63 billion to the New York City school budget and to produce a $9.2 billion capital plan to fix school buildings. Gov. George E. Pataki decided to appeal the order because "these decisions should be made by elected representatives of the people, not the courts," according to a statement by his spokesman.

The New York judge endorsed the recommendations of an advisory panel, which urged a 44% increase in the city operating budget of state, local and federal funds as well as the additional capital expenditures. (See Education Reporter, Jan. 2005.)

In 2003, New York's highest court ordered the state to ensure that New York City has enough money to provide its students a "sound, basic education." The legislature did not produce a response in 2004, and the latest trial court ruling represents an attempt to implement the 2003 decision.


 
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