City Council urges approval of Student Opportunity Act

On November 26, 2019, Governor Baker signed the Student Opportunity Act, which would provide a needed update to the state’s foundation budget formula and projected a $1.5 billion increase in state education funding to Massachusetts cities and towns by 2027.

“For decades the state’s formula underfunded our schools,” said Councilor Essaibi-George. She continued, “This act is supposed to provide [funding] due to correcting the mechanism that led to the chronic underfunding of low-income students, English-language learners and special education students, as well as the healthcare costs for our educators. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed out state’s inequities even more and shows us exactly why the Student Opportunity Act is necessary.”

The state has yet to appropriate this funding. The Council adopted a resolution urging the State Legislature to approve a full appropriation for the Student Opportunity Act as part of their FY21 budget negotiations.