The Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education

Report on the Status of the Public Education Financing System in Massachusetts

To:

Members of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education

From:

Mitchell D. Chester, Ed.D, Commissioner

Date:

September 13, 2013

In July, I submitted a Report on the Status of the Public Education Financing System in Massachusetts to the Legislature , as required by section 16 of the 2010 Achievement Gap Act.

This report provides an overview of the Chapter 70 program, the Commonwealth's primary state aid program for elementary and secondary education. It describes the history of the program's key provisions, analyzes the budget assumptions in the formula in light of actual district expenditures, and examines aid distribution and the efforts that have been made to address equity and fairness issues. The report identifies a number of changes that could be made to the existing formula to address issues that have arisen.

At our September 24 meeting, Deputy Commissioner Jeff Wulfson will present highlights of the report and respond to your questions.