that can function as a “report card” for this critical work. Here are four steps to get there:
First, for all 500 districts, the Basic Education Funding Commission must set adequacy targets — goals for funding levels for each district based on spending benchmarks from high-performing districts, adjusted to factor in the additional costs of educating students facing additional barriers such as poverty, disability, or learning English.
Third, the Basic Education Funding Commission must set targets for the “state share” of overall funding targets. Pennsylvania’s state share of overall education funding is one of the lowest in the country, and many of the inequities in the current system are driven by the inability of low-wealth districts to raise enough revenue locally to adequately fund schools.
Finally, the education funding commission must create a plan, with a reasonable timeline, for the state to implement this change. This plan should start with the 2024-25 state budget and require no more than three to five years to reach full implementation and pass constitutional muster. It should also include increases in state funding to keep pace with inflation in future years.
If the Basic Education Funding Commission fails to meet any of the above criteria, it will have failed to fulfill its constitutional duty. It’s critical that Pennsylvanians continue to pay