Statement from the Connecticut School Finance Project on the State's Appeal of the Ruling in CCJEF v. Rell

New Haven, Conn. – In response to the State's appeal of Connecticut Superior Court Judge Thomas Moukawsher's ruling in the case of Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding v. Rell, the Connecticut School Finance Project has released the following statement from director and founder Katie Roy.

Note: The Connecticut School Finance Project is not involved with the case, nor is it affiliated with the Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding or any of the plaintiffs in the case.

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While the State has decided to appeal the ruling of Connecticut Superior Court Judge Thomas Moukawsher in Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding (CCJEF) v. Rell, policymakers should heed the words of Attorney General George Jepsen and address Connecticut’s school finance challenges “immediately” and “without delay.”

While the wide-ranging ruling touched on many education policy issues outside of school finance that are open to debate and examination, Judge Moukawsher’s finding that Connecticut “has no rational, substantial and verifiable plan to distribute money for education aid” is not one of those issues open to debate.

Connecticut’s current school finance system is arbitrary, illogical, and inequitable. It is a convoluted system that is in serious need of repair if our state is ever going to serve its students, schools, and communities well.

With tough fiscal challenges, increasing student needs, and significant inequity across the state, Connecticut cannot continue to use a school finance system that is not based on the learning needs of students or the needs of the schools that serve them.

The State’s appeal does not alter the challenge before Connecticut and its policymakers. It’s the same challenge Connecticut has failed to properly address for nearly four decades: implementing and following a logical and equitable system for funding the state’s public schools.

Now is the time for the General Assembly to act and finally implement a school finance system that makes sense and provides every student, every school, and every community with resources and opportunities for success.

We will continue to work with policymakers and stakeholders across the state to achieve an equitable, predictable, and transparent school finance system that Connecticut can be proud of.

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