School leaders urge state to change special-education funding formula, cite unreimbursed costs

Superintendents and district officials from Hartford, Meriden, Southington and New Britain told a state legislative listening session that rising special-education expenses are outpacing state aid and are forcing local budget cuts.

Hartford Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Leslie Torres Rodriguez said ensuring services for students with disabilities "has encompassed some of the most demanding work during the past decade," and argued the state should add a weight to the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) formula to cover excess costs. “Our current overall revenue in Hartford is the same as it was back in 2019–20. When adjusted for inflation, this means that the total revenue has actually decreased over time,” she said.

Why it matters: District witnesses said unpredictable or partial reimbursement from the state forces towns to absorb large costs, drives program cuts in other areas and discourages districts from investing in in-district specialized programs that can keep students near home.

Most important facts first: Dr. Torres Rodriguez told the committee Hartford serves about 3,400 students who receive special-education services and another roughly 1,200 served through the district’s school-choice ecosystem; she said special-education costs account for roughly a third of the district’s total revenue. She said special-education tuition for placements outside the district has increased by about 30% since 2019 and cited $89,000,000 in outplacement tuition and roughly $22,000,000 in special-education transportation as recent statewide-scale figures discussed in her testimony. She urged a funding weight for special education; she said a weight equal to the state’s multilingual-learner weight would produce roughly $8 million more in annual revenue for Hartford (other numerical examples she offered were not specified clearly in the record).

Supporting details: Meriden Assistant Superintendent Dr. Patricia Sullivan Kowalski said Meriden’s net current expenditures per pupil are near the bottom of the state and listed the district’s per-pupil figure at $15,296. She described Meriden’s decision to internalize many services — hiring behavioral analysts, technicians and opening in-district specialized programs — and said that approach saves multimillion-dollar transportation costs (she gave examples such as $40,000–$45,000 per year to transport a student from Meriden to Hartford and $60,000 per year for longer routes). She asked the committee to push for fully funded excess-cost reimbursement and incentives for districts to build and maintain in-district programs.

Southington Superintendent Steve Madasni (identified in testimony as a district superintendent) and New Britain Superintendent Dr. Anthony Gasper said the unpredictability of reimbursement rates in recent years has left districts budgeting conservatively but still facing substantial midyear shortfalls. Southington described being eligible for millions more in reimbursement under current statute but receiving a smaller percentage in practice, leaving local taxpayers to make up the difference; New Britain said special education represents roughly 44% of its budget and asked for additional staff and predictable state funding.

Boards and administrators: Patrice McCarthy of the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education and Gail Nolan of the Family Resource Center Alliance urged removing the cap on the excess-cost grant or otherwise ensuring districts know in advance what reimbursement to expect. Multiple witnesses asked for either (a) a special-education weight in the ECS formula so the state shares in costs for in-district programs, or (b) lowering the threshold used to qualify for excess-cost reimbursement so more districts qualify.

What lawmakers heard about trade-offs: Witnesses said building and maintaining high-quality in-district programs reduces transportation and outplacement costs over time but requires sustained local investment up front; because reimbursement is unpredictable, local officials said municipal leaders often view program staffing as an added local cost rather than a state-shared investment.

What happens next: Committee members said they will review testimony and task-force recommendations and plan a formal public hearing when draft legislative language is ready.

Ending: District leaders, parent advocates and school-board representatives asked for predictable, increased state funding and for the committee to consider both ECS weighting and excess-cost changes to keep more students in their home communities and ease local budget pressure.