Earlier today, Governor Ned Lamont released his proposed state budget for fiscal years 2026 and 2027. The proposed budget provides greater funding for K-12 education through the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) and Excess Cost grants, as well as additional dollars to magnet schools, AgriScience programs, and state charter schools.
Despite these additional investments, the governor's proposed budget unfortunately falls short of fully funding all of Connecticut's public school students according to their needs.
The School and State Finance Project released the following statement from Executive Director Lisa Hammersley in response to the governor's budget and proposed education funding.
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We appreciate Governor Lamont’s thoughtful budget proposal and are encouraged by his recommended investments in education.
We applaud the governor for sticking to the ECS formula’s accelerated phase-in, creating a Universal Pre-School Endowment to support Connecticut’s families and youngest learners, and proposing additional funding for special education, including an increase to the Excess Cost grant in FY 2027.
While the governor’s budget proposal continues the partial implementation of a student-centered funding formula, which was passed last year by the General Assembly, far more work remains. Under the governor’s budget, tens of thousands of Connecticut students will still not be fully funded based on their learning needs.
As a state, we can, and must, do better to ensure every student — no matter where they live or what type of public school they attend — is receiving the resources and opportunities they need to reach their full potential and excel inside and outside of the classroom.
We look forward to continuing to work with the governor and the General Assembly to fully implement a student-centered funding system that equitably supports all students, invests in Connecticut’s future, and develops our state’s workforce to allow our businesses and economy to thrive.
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