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Baltimore City Community College Warns Funding Formula Cut Would Cost About $700K; Seeks Alternative MSP Funding

Education, Business and Administration Subcommittee · February 23, 2026

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Summary

DLS presented BCCC’s FY27 allowance and flagged a contingent reduction that would lower per‑FTES support from 68.5% to 67.5%, costing the college roughly $714,000 in FY27; college leaders described enrollment recovery, the hold‑harmless history, new grants, high vacancy rates, and plans to seek other funding for the Mayor’s Scholars Program (MSP).

Analysts told the subcommittee that Baltimore City Community College’s fiscal 2027 budget is $86.7 million, a decline of about $8.9 million (9.3%) from fiscal 2026 driven largely by a one‑time PAY‑GO appropriation in FY26. The Department of Legislative Services noted enrollment volatility from the pandemic, a correction to the FTES count used in the formula (2040 vs. 3047), and the growth of hold‑harmless funding that reached roughly 32% of total funding in FY25.

The budget reconciliation and financing proposal (BRFAA) includes a contingent provision that would lower BCCC’s per‑FTES appropriation from 68.5% to 67.5% of the selected 4‑year institutions’ per‑FTES level; DLS estimates a roughly $714,000 reduction for BCCC in fiscal 2027 if the provision is adopted. Todd Reynolds of AFT Maryland told the committee that even a 1 percentage‑point cut—about $700,000 annually—would significantly harm a community college already operating with limited local options to backfill state aid.

President Deborah McCurdy described progress on BCCC’s 12 realignment tasks, an annual report to the legislature, ERP modernization, and capital planning for a downtown site. Vice President Donna Thomas outlined new grant funding supporting workforce and remediation programs, including a $936,000 Maryland Promise Scholarship allocation (thousand), a $1,000,000 SNAP grant, and a Department of Labor grant of about $88,000. BCCC reported a personnel vacancy rate of 28.83% as of Dec. 31, 2025, and said it is filling senior positions to reduce that rate.

DLS recommended committee narrative requesting a report on MSP and enrollment that would include updated MSP data for 2025–26, counts of applications, summer bridge participation, and credit completion metrics. McCurdy asked the subcommittee not to change the funding formula and laid out outreach and dual‑enrollment strategies intended to boost enrollment and persistence.