Archived Information

School Finance: Chapter 70 Program

Final FY01 Chapter 70 Aid and Spending Requirements

I am pleased to provide you with final Chapter 70 school aid and spending requirements for FY01, in conformance with the final FY01 state budget. The proposal calls for $2.990 billion in aid, a $187 million increase over the FY00 distribution of $2.803 billion.

This package contains the following materials:

White pages -- the detailed calculations of the foundation budget, local contribution, state aid, and net school spending requirements for your municipality or district. Also included is a chart showing these components and the $125 per pupil professional development spending requirement for all districts in the state. The final column on the chart shows the dollar increase between preliminary FY01 Chapter 70 released in February and these final amounts. An advisory will be forthcoming that describes how this increment should be added to school budgets, as stipulated in Section 3 of the state budget.

Blue pages -- an explanation of the components which make up the foundation budget, including the dollar amount assigned to each component for FY01.

Green pages -- describe the assumptions used to calculate this year's Chapter 70.

Yellow pages -- An explanation of the calculations and formulas used to determine school aid, minimum local contributions, and total net school spending requirements.

Pink pages -- A listing of the amounts and budget language for two new one-time aid programs to 1) assist lower-income districts in reducing class size in grades K to 3; and 2) to assist districts that experienced extraordinary increases in enrollment between FY94 and FY01.

I would like to thank the many officials, researchers and interested citizens who have offered suggestions for how the formula might be changed in the future. Until agreement is reached about those changes, it is fortunate that Chapter 70 remains in statute as the Commonwealth's education aid formula. It is reassuring to know that the progress toward adequate funding levels that was made during the 1990's will not be eroded as we move ahead into the next decade.

All of the data you have received in this mailing, as well as a number of other analyses and policy papers relative to Chapter 70, are available on the Department's school finance web site (http://finance1.doe.mass.edu).

If you have any questions concerning your FY00 Chapter 70 calculations, please contact either Roger Hatch at (781) 338-6527 (rhatch@doe.mass.edu) or Phyllis Rogers at (781) 338-6534 (progers@doe.mass.edu) in the School Finance office.

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