New state budget adds Ready‑to‑Learn dollars; Cornwall‑Lebanon staff outline how funds and formula changes affect district
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Summary
Officials said the recently signed state budget increases basic and special education funding and creates a sizable Ready‑to‑Learn supplemental fund that requires application; Cornwall‑Lebanon will seek adequacy funds and expects modest increases in basic ed and special ed funding and a cyber school tuition formula change that yields roughly $200,000 in cost avoidance.
Cornwall‑Lebanon finance staff briefed the board on Jan. 5 about implications from the newly signed state budget, highlighting new Ready‑to‑Learn supplemental funds and changes to cyber school tuition calculations.
Staff said the state budget — signed after a 135‑day impasse — included a $105 million increase to basic education, a $40 million increase for special education, $565 million for Ready‑to‑Learn supplemental grants and a per‑district safety grant minimum. For Cornwall‑Lebanon, the district reported an approximate $104,000 increase in basic education funding and a special education increase that added about $2.1 million (a 13% increase from the prior period). Staff also noted a Ready‑to‑Learn adequacy supplemental in the current cycle of roughly $1.2 million that requires districts to apply by February; the funds are not competitive and must be spent according to program rules.
Finance staff highlighted a change to the cyber school tuition formula and an updated PDE calculation (referred to as PDE 363 in the presentation). That formula revision produced about $200,000 in estimated cost avoidance for the district versus prior accounting. Staff cautioned that Ready‑to‑Learn and other supplemental funds carry usage restrictions that may limit their applicability to facility reimbursements and other capital needs.
Board members raised questions about the nature of the Ready‑to‑Learn application (staff confirmed it is not competitive and must be specific about allowable uses) and whether applying would constrain future tax/index decisions under Act 1. Staff replied accepting the funds constrains Act 1 index use for districts beyond their planned limits and explained the district’s ongoing budget planning timeline with a proposed final in May and formal adoption in June.
Next steps: staff will evaluate allowable uses of the adequacy funds, prepare the February application as appropriate, and continue budget development through spring board meetings.