Resource Center
The Resource Center contains all reports and materials created by the School and State Finance Project as well as a wide collection of reports, publications, and data from Connecticut and national sources. All original content produced by the School and State Finance Project is labeled as such. Materials produced by sources outside the organization are labeled accordingly in the title of resource.
To navigate through the Resource Center, use the keyword search below or browse by selecting specific categories or years using the appropriate drop-down menus. To view all resources in the Resource Center, simply leave each search and category function blank and click the Search button.
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Analysis of State Education Funding in Governor's FY 2021 Recommended Budget Adjustments
Feb 7, 2020
School + State Finance Project Original Content
On Wednesday, February 5, 2020, Governor Ned Lamont introduced his recommended budget adjustments for fiscal year 2021 for the General Assembly to consider. This analysis from the School and State Finance Project details the state education funding and school finance changes contained in Governor Lamont’s recommended state budget adjustments for FY 2021, and compares the state education funding in the governor’s budget adjustments with funding for FYs 2020 and 2021 contained in the current biennial state budget.
Special Education Excess Cost Cooperative (INFOGRAPHIC)
Feb 7, 2020
School + State Finance Project Original Content
This infographic from the School and State Finance Project summarizes the Special Education Excess Cost Cooperative (the Co-op), a solution to a special education funding and budget planning challenge that municipalities and local school districts are facing annually across Connecticut.
Needs-Capacity Formula
Feb 19, 2020
School + State Finance Project Original Content
This one-pager from the School and State Finance Project details how Connecticut could use a needs-capacity formula to distribute non-education municipal aid to the state's cities and towns. A needs-capacity formula is based on a municipality's socioeconomic and physical characteristics and considers its costs of delivering a common level of service and its capacity to raise revenue to pay for those services. Under a needs-capacity formula, municipalities with the greatest level of fiscal disparity would receive a greater level of state funding, while municipalities with the capacity to pay for services through their own revenue raising capacities receive less or no state funding.
Alliance District and Priority School District Grants
Feb 13, 2020
School + State Finance Project Original Content
In an attempt to increase student achievement in Connecticut’s lowest-performing districts and schools, the Connecticut General Assembly, has appropriated funds to support Alliance District and Priority School District grants. The goal of these grants is to aid districts and schools in their goal to increase student achievement and enhance educational opportunities. This policy briefing from the School and State Finance Project details the process Alliance Districts and Priority School Districts must follow to receive their grant funding, and details how Alliance Districts and Priority School Districts are allowed to expend these grants.
Special Education Excess Cost Cooperative
Jan 27, 2020
School + State Finance Project Original Content
This one-pager from the School and State Finance Project details a solution to the unpredictable special education costs many of Connecticut's municipalities and local school districts annually face. Known as the Special Education Excess Cost Cooperative, this special education finance system allows the state and local governments to share in the costs of special education students with extraordinary learning needs.
CCJEF v. Rell (2018) (CT Supreme Court Decision)
Jan 17, 2018
In a 4-3 ruling, the Connecticut Supreme Court reversed in part, and affirmed in part, a 2016 ruling from Hartford Superior Court Judge Thomas Moukawsher focused on Connecticut's school finance system. The Supreme Court ruled the way Connecticut allocates state education dollars, and how much the State spends on public education, is constitutional and does not violate Article Eighth § 1 of the Connecticut Constitution.
Sheff v. O'Neill Supreme Court Ruling and Subsequent Stipulation Agreements
Feb 23, 2015
In 1996, in a 4-3 decision, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled the state had an affirmative obligation to provide Connecticut's school children with a substantially equal educational opportunity and that this constitutionally guaranteed right encompasses the access to a public education, which is not substantially and materially impaired by racial and ethnic isolation. The Court further concluded that school districting, based upon town and city boundary lines, is unconstitutional. As a result of the decision, the Connecticut State Legislature passed legislation in 1997 encouraging voluntary actions toward racial integration. However, since then, there have been a number stipulated agreements between the case's plaintiffs and the State of Connecticut to ensure the Connecticut Supreme Court's ruling is followed.
School Finance 101: An introduction to how public schools are funded in Connecticut
Dec 2, 2019
School + State Finance Project Original Content
This presentation from the School and State Finance Project examines the state's school finance system as a whole and the challenges it presents. Included in the presentation is information about Connecticut's 11 school funding formulas, the state's varying property tax rates, and the funding and population disparities among school districts across the state.
Analysis of State Education Funding in Governor's FY 2021 Recommended Budget Adjustments
Feb 7, 2020
School + State Finance Project Original Content
On Wednesday, February 5, 2020, Governor Ned Lamont introduced his recommended budget adjustments for fiscal year 2021 for the General Assembly to consider. This analysis from the School and State Finance Project details the state education funding and school finance changes contained in Governor Lamont’s recommended state budget adjustments for FY 2021, and compares the state education funding in the governor’s budget adjustments with funding for FYs 2020 and 2021 contained in the current biennial state budget.
Connecticut Economy & State Finance 101
Dec 2, 2019
School + State Finance Project Original Content
This presentation from the School and State Finance Project covers the basics of what an economy is, and how Connecticut's economy and its state budget interact and impact one another. The presentation also explores how choices impact the economy and what affects Connecticut's economic policy decisions.
