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House Dems Plan Would Erase Gov.'s Proposed $2.2M Branford ECS Cuts

A state budget plan proposed this week by the House Democrats would shield some towns, including Branford, from having Educational Cost Sharing (ECS) cut to zero, as proposed on August 18 under a revised Executive Order Resource Allocation Plan from Governor Dannel P. Malloy.

In 2017, Branford received $2,211,848 in ECS. Under Gov. Malloy's revisions, Branford would receive $0 in ECS in 2018. But with the House Dem's plan, Branford would receive $2,337,741 in ECS in 2018, an annual increase of $125,893.

The Governor's plan included cutting FY 2018 ECS distributions to zero in well-off communities, naming Branford as one of them, and redistributing the money to the state's 30 most impoverished school districts. While the proposed FY 2018 House Democratic ECS re-distribution plan still cuts all ECS aid to 25 municipalities and reduces ECS aid in another 25 school districts, Branford comes out not only unscathed, but with an increase in funding.

Why? Branford State Representative Sean Scanlon (D, District 98) said it's based on several factors figuring into a formula the House Democrats developed to determine how much ECS funding each town should receive in FY 2018.

"We used five factors -- average cost to educate a student, number of free and reduced lunch students, number of ELL [English Language Learner] students, property wealth and median household income," said Scanlon. "Including the income piece is huge for a town like Branford that, on the surface, has substantial property wealth but that doesn't always translate to income wealth. Our budget takes into account the economic diversity that exists in Branford and ensures they get their fair share of funding to properly deal with challenges such as one in four students receiving reduced lunch and over sixty languages being spoken in our schools."

Scanlon said he feels the House Democrat's approach is one that responds to what he's hearing from constituents in this district.

"I've heard very clearly from constituents in the last few days that the Governor's wipeout of our education funding is unacceptable; and I agree, which is why we crafted a plan to preserve and slightly increase our education funding, given how important that is to Branford families," Scanlon said.

Reporter's Note: The House Democrats plan was developed during caucusing this week. The House Republicans plan, also being caucused this week, is anticpated to be announced soon.