Bridgeport advocacy committee mobilizes statewide lobbying push to raise school funding

Summary

Bridgeport’s ad hoc advocacy committee praised student testimony in Hartford and set a rapid advocacy schedule — including a March 4 press conference and participation in a March 25 statewide lobby day — to press lawmakers to raise the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) base and remove statutory “guardrails” that limit use of surplus funds.

Rob Traver, chair of the ad hoc advocacy committee for Bridgeport Public Schools, told members the district must sustain pressure on state lawmakers after a high-profile day of student testimony in Hartford and use a string of upcoming events to press for more funding.

"The students were clearly the stars up in Hartford," Traver said, describing how student speakers raised the profile of Bridgeport’s funding request. The committee endorsed two near-term public actions: a press conference at the Capitol on March 4 and joining the statewide Connecticut for All lobby day on March 25.

The committee centered its advocacy on changes to the Education Cost Sharing formula, commonly called ECS, which members said has not been adjusted for inflation in more than a decade. "It hasn't been increased for 13 years, and that's not gonna do it," Traver said, arguing that raising the ECS base — rather than waiting for a full formula overhaul — is the most achievable short-term goal in the current short legislative session.

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Bridgeport advocacy committee mobilizes statewide lobbying push to raise school funding

Summary

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