HARTFORD, Conn. — Friday, a large coalition of lawmakers, advocates and parents gathered at the Legislative Office Building to call on the state legislature to fund schools immediately.
“We need to maintain this funding because a one-time payment does not make structural change,” said Speaker of the House, Rep. Matt Ritter at Friday’s press conference.
They pushed a new bill to increase funding for the state’s public schools.
Proponents said the measure, House Bill 5003, will provide necessary revisions to the state's education funding model, increasing investments in Connecticut public schools to improve what they call “educational equity.”
“Let's just fully fund this thing once and for all and get it done,” Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff said.
HB 5003 would fully fund the state's Education Cost Sharing program (ECS), formulated back in 2017, three years sooner than originally planned.
Supporters of the measure said the state has enough money to release more dollars now, fully funding ECS by 2025 – when one-time federal COVID relief money expires – instead of waiting until 2028.
“We need big bold moves. Big bold moves, such as big bold dollar numbers,” added Kate Dias, president of the Connecticut Education Association. “Listen, we are talking about a multi-billion dollar budget.”
The bill would also provide over $250 million in additional state funding to 157 Connecticut towns and cities, and supporters said it would reduce economic and racial funding disparities.
“We had about $50 million in cuts. We've had to close schools. We have a teaching deficit,” Bridgeport Board of Education member Christine Baptiste-Perez said. “It will be that first domino to close the gap.”
“As far as I'm concerned, we're running about a year late and from where I come from, it might be a couple of decades late,” Rep. Antonio Felipe, vice chair of the Black and Puerto Rican Caucus, continued.
HB 5003 has bipartisan support, with ranking members of the Education Committee speaking at Friday’s press conference, but not all Republicans are on board.
“I appreciate the dedication many of my colleagues have shown on this issue, but it’s important that we remember decisions about education funding and tackling all funding formulas can't occur in a vacuum," House Minority Leader Rep. Vincent Candelora said in a statement.
After Friday’s press conference, a public hearing for the bill began, lasting more than seven hours.
The co-chair of the Education Committee, Rep. Jeff Currey (D-East Hartford), said he’s “confident” this proposal has enough support in the legislature.
Emma Wulfhorst is a political reporter for FOX61 News. She can be reached at ewulfhorst@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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