Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Governor Eliot Spitzer recently released dramatically slashed city and state budgets, a response to possible economic recession that has drawn fire from schools and education advocacy groups.
The city budget, announced Jan. 24, proposes a 2.5 percent reduction in funding for all city agencies this year and a 4.3 percent increase in cuts in the next fiscal year.
The Department of Education is slated to receive a $180 million cut this year, followed by a reduction of $325 million more next year. Principals across the city will be asked to cut a total of $99 million in direct spending, and the Department will administer four standardized tests to students each year as opposed to five as originally planned. Lead Teacher, an incentive program developed in conjunction with the teachers’ union, will lose all city funding.
According to Geri Palast, Executive Director of the advocacy group Campaign for Fiscal Equity, a reduction in aid “translates into fewer teachers, larger classrooms, less investment in strategies from middle school reform to after school programs that make the difference in academic achievement for our kids.”
Principal Virginia Pepe of PS 163 said that principals would have to make tough decisions and decide which school services were more expendable.
But Leonie Haimson, Executive Director of the advocacy group Class Size Matters, said that there was no room for school budget cuts. “There is simply no fat to cut at the school level,” Haimson said.
Despite the cuts, Bloomberg is keeping a $400 rebate for homeowners and 7 percent property tax cut for city residents—programs that cost the city about $1.25 billion—in a decision that some criticize as irresponsible.
“According to the state’s highest court, NYC public schools are severely underfunded—so much so that our children are unable to receive an adequate education,” Haimson said. “The idea that the mayor wants to slash the budget for schools by $300 million while offering $1.25 billion in tax breaks is obscene.”
Yet others consider Bloomberg’s conservative spending and adherence to tax cuts reasonable in light of the lagging economy and possible economic recession. Bloomberg referred to the economic outlook in a press release as “very troubling.”
Spitzer also cited the slowing economy as the reason for a more conservative budget. The governor’s press release states that “the balanced budget fulfills the Governor’s budget goals of responsibly closing the budget gap, protecting core priorities and investing for economic growth.”
The proposal emphasizes conservative spending in the face of “declines in expected revenue growth across the country and in New York in particular.” If approved, the budget will close the spending deficit without raising taxes over the next fiscal year.
The state budget proposes an overall increase in aid for public schools, with $536 million of the $21 billion allocated to state schools specifically directed at New York City. But the budget indicates a $200 million cut in a type of aid known as Foundation Aid. Restrictions on the uses of Foundation Aid ensure that it is aimed at programs such as those that help decrease class size or provide training for teachers.
“New York State made a commitment in 2007 to finally meet its obligations to our school children and raise the bar on educational quality for every child,” said Billy Easton, Executive Director of the Alliance for Quality Education. “Today’s budget proposal provides $350 million less in foundation aid than committed.”
The city and state budgets will go to the New York City Council and the New York State Legislature respectively for final approval.