On April 22, 2025, the Connecticut General Assembly's Appropriations Committee introduced and passed its recommended state budget for fiscal years 2026 and 2027. This nonpartisan analysis details these changes to state education funding in the Appropriations Committee's budget, and provides a brief overview of the general fiscal outlook of the state budget and economy.
This infographic explains how the Excess Cost grant works. The grant is provided by the State of Connecticut to school districts to assist them in paying for students who have extraordinary special education needs and associated costs.
This frequently asked questions document summarizes key components of Connecticut's Excess Cost grant, which is provided by the State to school districts to assist them in paying for special education expenses for students with extraordinary needs.
This frequently asked questions document discusses special education services for Connecticut students attending public schools of choice, including how those services are delivered and paid for.
One learning need currently not weighted for in the ECS formula is special education. This summary document provides an overview how adding a weight for students with disabilities to the ECS formula would benefit students, the cost of adding such a weight, and other states that currently weight for special education in their funding formulas.
Excess Cost grant reimbursement requests for FY 2024 significantly exceeded the $181 million appropriated for the grant in the state budget, and are expected to exceed the amount appropriated in FY 2025. Without additional funding, districts and towns will not receive the reimbursement levels specified in statute for the Excess Cost grant, resulting in less funding for all districts educating high-needs students with disabilities.