Executive Director's Message

We hope that you and your families had a restful and enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday.

We are grateful for all the work you do in serving your communities and the children of our region.

The Rockefeller Institute released its much anticipated study on Foundation Aid and issued several recommendations for the Governor and the Legislature to consider for adoption to update and reform aspects of the formula.

We encourage your entire governance team to review the recommendations and understand the potential impacts to your specific district.

We want to thank the Rockefeller Institute for the job they did with this report which was thoughtful and detailed. There are several recommendations that are innovative and help support public education across the State.

Given the short time frame in which they had to study this complex issue they did a commendable job and we thank them for hearing many of the advocacy points we raised on multiple occasions.

From an advocacy point of view, there are a few things to keep in mind:

First, this report is not legislation, they are recommendations to the Governor and the full Legislature. As Bob Lowry from NYSCOSS has said "this is the first word not the last" on the issue of education financing in New York State.

Second, we should advocate to our State officials that there is no sense of urgency from an economic standpoint to adopt something quickly. The Rockefeller Institute even stated in their report that a more in-depth review of key aspects should be undertaken and they would have if they had more time. It's more important to get it done correctly as opposed to quickly. There is no pending economic crisis in New York State, quite the opposite, and an issue this complex, that will impact so many for so many years warrants due diligence as opposed to expedience.

Third, the recommendations should not be "cherry picked" or viewed in isolation. There are many moving parts within the calculations of the formula that you shouldn't pick one aspect without careful consideration of the impact and potential unintended consequences it could have on the overall calculation.

Fourth, removing save harmless provisions within the formula is a bad policy idea. With a formula so complex and school communities so diverse with very unique needs across the State, save harmless is necessary.

The Governor has just recently stated she is not in favor of eliminating save harmless and we are grateful for her change on this issue, and we agree it should not be eliminated.

Fifth, using reserves as any part of the calculation in the formula is another bad policy idea. Proper fiscal management demands proper reserves. We have advocated for many years, that the cap of 4% on undesignated reserves is not adequate, and we are the only governmental entity in the State that has this restriction. We believe the cap should be increased to 10%.

Advocacy is always important but this coming year takes on a new level of importance. Meet with your local State officials early and often. Educate them on the needs of your district, and know that N-SSBA has done this and will continue to meet with our State officials on this and many other issues in the months ahead.

Lastly, on behalf of the officers, Executive Committee members, Lorraine Mentz and myself, we want to wish you and your families, a very happy and healthy holiday season.