Branford Educators Seek Fair Share of Public School Funds

by Marcia Chambers | May 8, 2007 2:04 PM | | Comments (7)


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Hartford— Branford’s top education leaders went to the State Capitol last week seeking ways to fix an inequitable educational funding system that has severely short-changed the town.

Lonnie Reed, the chairman of RTM education committee, was the moving force in setting up a meeting with State Senator Ed Meyer, who in turn, introduced Reed and her group to a dozen or more state legislators, some of whom find their own towns in the same bind as Branford.

The fact-finding mission, pictured above, included Reed, Frank Carrano, the president of the Branford Board of Education, Bob Babcock, president of the Branford Education Foundation and David Baker, a member of Reed’s committee. Cheryl Morris, the First Selectwoman and John Smith, the RTM’s majority leader tagged along at the last minute. BOE members John Prins and Marie Watson came later in the day.

Beginning in the 1970’s, courts across the nation began to examine how cities and suburbs funded public school education. In state after state, school funding was found to be unequal and declared unconstitutional. “Horton vs. Meskill,” decided in 1977, is the landmark lawsuit that changed how Connecticut distributes education aid to cities and towns. Horton II, decided in 1985, sought fifty percent funding from the state in order to remedy funding disparities among towns. The Supreme Court turned that down.

Over the years, the legislature has tweaked and re-tweaked its education cost formula, so that some towns now face the same educational disparity in funding that prompted Horton thirty years ago. Not surprisingly, the same ECS formula is now back in Superior court, the subject of a major state lawsuit that seeks to change the Horton distribution. Branford is one of the towns seeking redress.

About 43 of the state’s 169 towns know they are victims of this broken financing formula that perpetuates itself year after year, Meyer said. The formula has never been fully funded. It is based on a town’s grand list, a record of all taxable and tax-exempt property. Shoreline towns are penalized because of, well, the shoreline, but that has little to do with the true wealth of the population or the ability of a shoreline resident to pay steep property taxes.

It has become a disgraceful system that legislators seem unwilling to fix perhaps because the chairs of several key legislative committees represent cities and they are determined to send as many educational dollars back to them without regard to how towns fare. The cities—-Bridgeport, Hartford and New Haven receive upwards of $6,000 in state funds per year (Hartford is up to $7,245) while Branford gets a measly $349.00 per pupil. Property taxes make up the difference, with home owners forced to foot the bill for the remaining $10,151. per child per year.

Senator Meyer, who has tried for the past three years to increase the state’s contribution to a minimum $1,000 per pupil, says the problem is “they view Branford and the other towns as gold coast towns. We are not gold coast towns.” The reason for this misconception is that prices for houses along the shoreline soared during the 2002 revaluation. What is forgotten is how many homeowners were forced to sell because they could not afford the astronomically high property taxes.

Meanwhile, towns like Branford are getting a pittance given what they are sending the state, Meyer said.

According to figures for 2005-06, Branford sent Hartford $37.3 million in income taxes. Its 1,601 businesses generated $32,564,741 in sales and use taxes for Hartford. Meyer said that for fiscal 2006-07 Branford got back in state, federal and gambling money for education, roads and other expenses, a measly $2.267 million, from which the town received that $349 per pupil.

This year Governor M. Jodi Rell has sought change, making education reform her top priority, but the Democratic leadership has been stubborn and largely unresponsive. Under Rell’s proposal, Branford would do far better than it would under the Democrats plan, a fact Meyer acknowledges with sadness.

Governor Rell wants to increase the amount the towns receive for education.The Democrats, who control the legislature, appear more interested in health care than in education this year. Gov Rell wants a property tax cap, and she is right in seeking one. Forty-three states have imposed some sort of limit on property taxes.
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For two hours, Reed, Carrano and the others buttonholed state senators outside the caucus room and inside the then empty Senate chamber. They had only a few minutes. At one point Meyer, Carrano and Reed met briefly with State Senator Andrew Maynard, (left) who represents the 18th District in the area of Stonington. He told them he was familiar with the serious disparity in funding because one or two of his towns face the same problem every year.

“I chair the Education committee of the RTM,” Reed said. “And this formula is flawed. We need to try to get $1,000 per child. We have to try to make it happen.” Maynard agreed with Reed and Meyer that the ECS formula “is really the problem.” After a few minutes of discussion, and a moment for a snapshot, Maynard said to them both: “Let’s work together.”
Several other legislators, including Senator Bob Duff of Norwalk, agreed to help form a coalition in which the towns do not try to take money that is allocated for the cities but seek additional funding to make the formula more equitable.

“We are misperceived; we are much more diversified than you think,” Reed told one of the senators. Carrano told another senator that part of the problem is that the ECS formula has never been fully funded. Cheryl Morris said the formula was inequitable and that the towns needed their rightful share.

In general the response from Senators was positive. The Assembly side needed more prodding. Rep. Peter Panaroni pressed the idea for coalitions to form, but seemed to offer not much more. Pat Widlitz, now the Assistant Majority Whip, noted that funding for nursing homes, health care and energy had yet to be decided. From her point of view, education funding was not her number 1 priority though she conceded the ECS formula “was archaic.”

Mrs. Morris was extremely gracious to the African-American legislators she met up with in the hallway or caucus areas. She smiled, introduced herself, extended her hand and invoked her husband, Bruce Morris, once one of the state’s most powerful black leaders and still a formidable behind-the-scenes player.

“Do you know Bruce Morris of New Haven,” Mrs. Morris asked of each one. They smiled and said they did. “I’m his wife,” she said proudly “and I am the First Selectwoman of Branford.” Then they would chat briefly.

Reed said the group’s mission was to explain the truth behind the town’s image. She said that a report from the University of Connecticut Center for Population Research reclassified Branford from suburb to “urban periphery,” noting that over the last ten years, Branford’s poverty rate has increased from 3.5 percent to 4.1 percent, placing Branford below the median for the state
“They need to know we have trailer parks in Branford and a number of kids with autism in the schools and we have all those unfunded mandates, too. We have gotten screwed and what we need for starters is a minimum $1,000 per kid. We don’t need double digit mill rates. We need to have a conversation about this,” she told the Eagle.

At days end, Meyer said a number of his colleagues were impressed with the group’s message, and they were going to seek ways to work together. Reed, who has worked on the Broadwater issue and is good at building coalitions across party lines, said she would seek support among legislators connected to small towns.

One of the senators the group wanted to meet was Tom Gaffey of Meriden, a city of 60,000. He has chaired the Senate’s education committee for years and while he touts change, he routinely manages to keep certain towns from getting their fair share of the ECS dollar. The group hopes to meet with him next week. They want to tell him that towns have kids who go to public schools too.
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Posted by: Bob from Branford | May 9, 2007 2:12 PM

Senator Meyer, what a joke; this guy is as guilty as the rest of them. If he really wanted to arrange a meeting with Gaffey he could. Rather then take the initiative to really do something badly needed, he prefers to play this political power-trip game with his constituents. How anyone can't see past this would be amusing if it weren't so sad. let me see if I have this right--Meyer is a Democrat, Gaffey is a Democrat, the Education Committee is run by a veto-proof group of Democrats...yet nothing gets done.
Maybe someone needs to kiss the ring, or pay the piper...GET A CLUE--you're being taken advantage of.

Posted by: j.l. pottenger, jr. | May 9, 2007 6:39 PM

I don't agree with Bob. Senator Meyer has gone out on a limb -- quite far, frankly, on a rather frail branch -- in trying to increase the State's educational funding for Branford and the other Shoreline towns.

On the other hand, it is not just the size of our grand list which "hurts" Branford under the formula. The "effort" we make (locally) -- i.e. how heavily we are willing to tax ourselves to pay for education -- also is a factor under the ECS formula. Branford, unfortunately, does not score well on that dimension of the ECS calculation. (Even though NO Town or City has been paid its "formula" amount in either of the past two fiscal years.)

One additional point that our delegation might consider on its next field trip to Hartford: the last time I saw a stat, nearly 30% of the children in Branford's public schools were from single-parent families. If still true (or roughly so), that should shock those who don't know our Town -- and might help them see why "we" do need more State funding. Without, Mrs. Morris was right to emphasize, taking any dollars away from the needy cities.

Posted by: E. Cleveland [TypeKey Profile Page] | May 10, 2007 3:20 PM

Regarding comments made by BobfromBranford, I think he is mistaken in his characterization of Senator Meyer's efforts to change the ECS. If he really thinks that Meyer is playing a "power-trip game" and really could singlehandedly fix the ECS to help Branford, I would think that doing so would give him way more political points than playing a "power-trip game." What BobfromBranford should realize is that not all democrats up in Hartford WANT to fix the ECS. That's why Meyer is being so courageous in aligning himself with the governor on this issue! It would be nice if our own Branford town leaders had their constituents' needs at heart like Meyer does. Cheryl showing up at the last minute along with her biggest RTM supporter, John Smith, is a joke. When else has Cheryl gone to Hartford to lobby about the ECS in her term? Not once. It is so easy for her to jump on board, after someone else has done all the legwork, and take the credit -- yessir, she just loves those Kodak moments.

Posted by: Bob from Branford | May 10, 2007 4:45 PM

The wool has been sificantly pulled over your eyes. "single handedly," get a clue. If Meyer teamed up with a number of other representatives and senators in a simular lot he could get it done. It's no diffent than his predecessor. If you recall, Senator Aniskovich took the same advocacy role. The only difference in their position here is that Meyer is in the majority party and Aniskovich was in the minority party.

These tools of deception are the weapons of the oligarchy.

Its called compromise, its called working the system to affect change and to respond to the people that sent you there!

Posted by: ctkeith | May 10, 2007 7:20 PM

Bob,

Ed Meyer is going up against a long established system where the big city Dems get an unbelievably large share of the Education money and has really stuck his neck out on a principled position.Meyer had been warned not to do this by leadership but did it anyway and continues to push against his parties own leaders on principle and to the benefit his district.

The easy thing for Meyer to have done would have been to keep quiet or sponsor a bill every yr like Aniskovich did that was Dead on Arrival purely for political points and gave Panaroni and Wilditz the cover they loved Aniskovich so much for.

Ed Meyer was a menber of New York State Board of Regents for over 15 years and has been fighting for Government support of Education probably longer than you've been alive. He has probably forgotten more about Education than most State senators ever new. I've yet to see him take the easy way out on a single issue since the people of our Senate district were smart enough to send him to Hartfor to represent us.

Rells proposal on education,although not perfect,is far superior to what the Democrats brought out of committee. A compromise at the end of the legislative session is the only sure thing in order to get a budget passed. Ed Meyers Principled position , his expertise and his fearless determination to fight for his district has put Branford in a position,for the first time in well over a decade,where we just might get a few more dollars coming our way from the state for education.

Posted by: E. Cleveland [TypeKey Profile Page] | May 11, 2007 7:21 AM

BobfromBranford: Please please please call Senator Meyer. He welcomes calls from his constituents! I also know he would welcome others to come to Hartford to lobby for changing the ECS. I'll go with you!

Posted by: Jeff Klaus | May 12, 2007 5:39 PM

Last year, I had a pretty eye-opening experience as I served on the Governor's ECS commission. This is the group that was tasked to bring some fiscal reform ideas to the Governor around education spending. I believe that the recommendations that came out of the commission served as the basis for Governor Rell's ambitious proposed investment in education.

How we raise and spend our education dollars in the state is a very complicated topic. It involves difficult issues of educational and fiscal equity. Here are some thoughts:

1. CT SPENDS A LOT ON PUBLIC SCHOOLS. It is true that the state government funds less of our K-12 schools budget than other states. BUT before you call CT. taxpayers stingy on education, consider that many of the same taxpayers pay far MORE local property taxes than in other states. Where do the property taxes go? They pay for local schools budgets. So if you add together town education funding with state education funding, in total it turns out that we spend MORE than the average state on public education. Far more.

2. ECS REFORM SHIFTS TAX BURDENS. What will the impact be if we shift the burden from local property owners to income earners? I'm not sure. But aren't most property owners also income earners? My guess is that when we have a year where there isn't any state surplus, the higher income folks and business owners will be picking up more of the tab.

3. THE ECS DEBATE IS NOT FOCUSED ON RESULTS. WHO pays for education has nothing to do with HOW it's spent! The ECS Commission spent lots of time studying who paid for education. We also spent lots of time studying HOW MUCH more should be spent (there was a very strong bias towards increasing spending in most categories), but we spent very little time focused on the outcomes. The greatest disappointment to me about the Commission's work was the relatively weak accountability recommendations.


4. THE AVERAGE SUBURBAN SCHOOL DISTRICT IN CT IS DECENT; THE AVERAGE URBAN SCHOOL DISTRICT IS AN UNMITIGATED DISASTER. In terms of educational outcomes, in CT. we have a tale of two cities, or rather a tale of the cities and the suburbs. Our suburban districts rank near the top nationally in academic achievement, our cities rank near the bottom. Much of the state funding goes to, and will continue to go to urban districts. You might think that's the way it should be. Unfortunately, the urban school districts are broken. As they are currently structured, no amount of additional money is going to fix the outcomes. If you want to see what would happen if we invested lots more money in our disfunctional urban school districts, just google "Abbott District results". Read about Newark's per pupil spending and results.

5. PROMISING DEVELOPMENTS IN HARTFORD. Mayor Perez recently hired Steve Adamowski as Hartford's new superintendant. Based on his track record and his new ideas about district management, Adamowski has a decent chance to turn Hartford around. Why? Because this guy believes in real accountability in the system, and he ranks the needs of the children higher than the stated needs of the adults working in the system.

6. UNDERSTANDABLY NCLB MAY NOT BE POPULAR IN THE 'BURBS, BUT IT IS GREAT MEDICINE FOR FORCING BETTER OUTCOMES IN THE CITIES WHERE THE RESULTS ARE ANEMIC. Folks in Branford and other similar towns can lobby all they want for more ECS funding but the improvements in the formula will be marginal because of the strength of the cities lobby. What would be more effective, is if Branford lobbied both for more funding AND for the urban districts to be REQUIRED to improve their performance. That would be the best return on political investment.

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