25-year old calculations do not make equitable access to schools

If a picture is worth a 1000 words, this one, courtesy of Colin Jones of Mass Budget is one of the most compelling reasons why we need to implement the Foundation Budget update (S.2525) which is currently languishing in Committee.Communities with greater wealth have the luxury of adding to the grossly under-calculated "what it costs to educate a student" (Chapter 70) calculation. Here's an example: in neighboring Burlington, MA, the per pupil cost calculated $9,940. In Lowell, that base number is set at $11,734.  Based on the economics of each community, the Commonwealth determined that Burlington's state aid be set at $1,724 leaving the remainder, $8,341, for the Town of Burlington to provide. Recognizing that Lowell's community economics are different from Burlington, the numbers look quite different: state aid is $8,875 and the City's required contribution is $2,859. In an effort the keep this "simple", which it is not, I'm ignoring the whole cash vs. "in kind services" debate.Burlington's per pupil costs are enhanced by the Town's ability to add $8,409 to what Massachusetts has determined is the cost of educating a student in that town. Lowell, with many more demands on its municipal budget, adds $518. So, in the end, Lowell is able to spend $12,252 on every school student (public and charter) while more affluent Burlington can allocate $18,474.This is not just a simple numbers game; it gets worse. Those per pupil determinations that the Commonwealth starts with are based on 1993 (yes, that is correct) formula calculations. So in 2018, the data determining how much each community is expected to expend and raise for each student is already 25 years out of date.The Foundation Budget Review Commission tackled this issue 2 years ago, but the recommendations were not implemented. It was not forgotten by everyone, however, and a refreshed bill, S.2525 unanimously passed the Massachusetts Senate last month. Now it's the Massachusetts House's turn. And this week, with some strong advocacy by Rep. Vega, House members are appealing to Speaker DeLeo to move this legislation out of the House Rules Committee and on to a floor for a vote.Locally, because state funding in education has been whittled away Lowell's kids are on the losing end of budget roulette: our K-8 students will no longer have school libraries, for example.As of this morning, only Rady Mom from the Lowell Legislative Delegation has signed on to Rep. Vega's letter asking that Speaker DeLeo move the FBRC bill (S.2525) out of committee for a vote.I cannot understand why our other two representatives are hesitating to embrace a reform that would - over time - provide Lowell's children with equal access to educational services. Maybe one of them can explain that to me.If your Representative is either Mr. Golden or Mr. Nangle, please call, fax, or email them today. We need to fix the funding formulae in Massachusetts so that every child, no matter the ZIP code in which they reside, has equal access to education in the Number One Schools in the Nation.