MAYOR ELICKER PROVIDES TESTIMONY ON GOVERNOR LAMONT’S PROPOSED FY26-27 BUDGET AND URGES INCREASED STATE FUNDING FOR EDUCATION

[HARTFORD, CT] - On Tuesday evening, Mayor Justin Elicker provided testimony before the Connecticut General Assembly's Appropriations Committee on Governor Lamont's proposed fiscal year 2026-2027 budget and urged state lawmakers to increase the state's per student foundation amount and to index it for inflation moving forward, which would help close the gap between actual student needs and current state funding levels. The state's per student foundation amount has not increased since 2013.

The testimony was provided during the Appropriations Committee's public hearing on Governor Lamont's proposed fiscal year 2027 budget adjustments for elementary and secondary education, as outlined in HB 5032, "An Act Adjusting the State Budget for the Biennium Ending June 30, 2027."

In addition to Mayor Elicker, Superintendent Madeline Negrón, New Haven Federation of Teachers President Leslie Blatteau and several other New Haven educators, advocates, students and residents provided spoken testimony and submitted written testimony to the committee. Mayor Elicker's spoken testimony before the committee can be viewed here (speaker #188) and his written testimony is below. This advocacy builds on the city's ongoing efforts during this and prior state legislative sessions on the need for the state to update its Education Cost Sharing formula.

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Testimony on Governor's Proposed Adjustments to the Biennial Budget FY26-FY27 --

HB 5032: An Act Adjusting the State Budget for the Biennium Ending June 30, 2027

Tuesday, February 17^th, 2025

Appropriations Committee Public Budget Hearing

Dear Co-Chairs Senator Osten, Representative Walker, Ranking Members Sommers and Nuccio, and distinguished members of the Appropriations Committee.

My name is Justin Elicker, Mayor of the City of New Haven, and I am here to testify on the Governor's Proposed Adjustments to the Biennial Budget for Fiscal Year 2026-2027 to urge you to allocate additional funding to increase the per-student foundation amount in the state's Education Cost Sharing (ECS) formula, index it for inflation moving forward, and help close the gap between our actual student needs and current funding levels.

As you all have been hearing from many different individuals, districts, municipalities, and constituency groups - the per-student foundation amount hasn't increased since 2013. And while we have appreciated the legislature and Governor's work to accelerate the phase-in of the current ECS formula, we need a new formula - one in which the base foundation amount is not $11,525, when that $11,525 would be $15,580 in 2024 real dollars adjusted for inflation, which would be a 35% increase over current funding levels.

Not increasing the foundation amount means that our schools will have to continue to do more with less. With extreme federal uncertainty, a statewide housing crisis, continued impacts from the pandemic on our young people, and federal chaos around immigration enforcement, our schools represent a beacon, an essential resource, for our students and families in New Haven. But with staffing gaps and ratios of 27 school psychologists across our 39 schools serving almost 18,000 students (which would be a ratio of 661 students per psychologist), 52 social workers for 18,000 students (a ratio of 343 students per social worker), and only 23 librarians in our 39 schools - we owe our students & families more - especially with a high-needs student population of 85.54% in New Haven and 678 students experiencing homelessness or housing instability last school year. Our multilingual learners, students with disabilities, free and reduced-priced lunch students need more support, not less, and support that accounts for inflation.

At the local level, we have done what we can to increase our funding for our schools. The City's contribution to our district's budget has gone up $30 million, a 66% increase (from $45.7 million to $75.7 million) in the past six years. Unfortunately, without a similar increase in state funding, that cost shifts to our local taxpayers and residents - their tax bills increasing almost 20% (from FY2020-2023) and burdening already vulnerable individuals and families, with 50% of New Haven residents cost-burdened, and 60% falling below the ALICE threshold.

Connecticut ranks 45^th when it comes to the state's share of education funding and 2^nd when it comes to local share (according to the National Center for Education Statistics), which means that inequities based on zip code are exacerbated.

Education is one of the most important building blocks of opportunity for all of our young people, and one of the most important levers to affect their lives and the futures of our communities, our municipalities, and our state. Now is the time to invest in them, and in us.

Thank you for your time and consideration and I strongly encourage your support.

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