Summary of State Budgetary Items

The following provides a brief summary of budgetary items that have been passed by the NYS legislature. The summary is a selection of items that may be most pertinent to SAANYS members, although there are a multitude of items that may be of periphery interest.

Items Pertinent to State Aid

• $27.9 billion allocated for state aid
• $618 million increase in Foundation Aid. This increase is the same as last year’s increase.
• Tax Cap – 2% permanent cap
• BOCES DS salary cap raised to 98% of Commissioner’s salary
• Expense-based aids remain as actual cost reimbursement – did not become a collapsed formula based on base year costs and a percentage on that base.

Items Pertinent to Districts

• $3 million for alternative discipline grants to districts with high suspension or exclusion rates
• $151 million for charter school reimbursement to school districts
• $1.5 million for student mental health need grants – through SED (mental health centers, training, anti-bullying programs, school climate surveys, school/family engagement resources)
• Districts may establish reserve funds for teacher retirement system.
• Piggy back contracts for transportation of shared routes.
• Districts can contract with a third party for the installation, administration, operation, notice of processing and maintenance of school bus cameras. May share revenues.
• Maintains equity plans-primarily an expanded reporting requirement. Local authority to distribute funding to schools retained.
• $280,000 for school bus driver training to school districts and BOCES.
• Districts must conduct building condition surveys every 5 years. SED must establish regulations and a staggered implementation of districts who must conduct the survey starting in 2020.

Items Pertinent to Principal /Teachers

• Extreme Risk Protection Act was included making principals or their designees as respondents for submitting a petition to prohibit the sales of guns and/or confiscate guns from persons thought to be in immediate danger of harming themselves or others.
• $3 million to address teacher shortage
• Teacher Corp stipends (up to $15,000) to recruit increased teacher diversity
• Every school must define roles and responsibilities of school personnel, security personnel, and law enforcement in response to student misconduct that violates the code of conduct.

Items Pertinent to Students/Programs

•  $4 million for students in poverty to access AP and International Baccalaureate exams
• $500,000 for increasing access to advanced coursework
• $47 million expands after school programs
• $24 for extended day and school violence programs
• Dual enrollment in tuition-free college courses for high school students permitted
• $750,000 for farm-to-market programs
• Prekindergarten programs expanded -$15 million additional for programs to expand to full or half-day programs for three or four year olds.
• $340 million for full-day universal pre-kindergarten programs
• $21 million for extended learning grants in collaboration with CBOs.

Contact the SAANYS Government Relations Department at cgallagher@saanys.org with any questions.