NEW YORK – a new report published Monday aims to resolve New York City’s financial concerns after the City Council approved a budget that would appear to leave schools with millions less than in previous years, prompting an outcry from parents and teachers.
Budget woes have only intensified as the days of summer dwindle and the first day of school, September 8, approaches. The groups have rallied at City Hall, sometimes joined by some of the same Council members who approved the cuts in June.
The issue of a $215 million shortfall is now tangled in the courts, where a group of parents and teachers have sought an injunction to prevent the city from cutting funding.
Now, with less than five weeks to go before students and teachers return to classrooms, Comptroller Brad Lander claims to have found the funds, and then some.
The actual budget deficit is much larger, his office said Monday. The FY23 budget cuts $469 million, more than double what the Department of Education previously understood.
Lander’s office said that $505.6 million is not yet committed of the $3.02 billion in federal COVID stimulus funds already budgeted; that would be more than enough to cover the Fair Funding for Students cut, she argues.
“Preparing for the future means fully funding our schools to help our children recover from the pandemic and getting our fiscal house in order in the event of a recession,” Lander said. “Our year-end analysis shows that we can do both. There is no fiscal need to cheat our children.”
The funding cuts to city schools come after a massive drop in enrollment citywide, at a time when federal stimulus dollars have run out.
Many of the city council members who voted in favor of next year’s fiscal budget have joined the rallying cries of parents and teachers in opposition to the cuts. Most of its members signed a letter last month asking Mayor Eric Adams to restore the funds.
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