Last fall, it looked like Maine schools were poised to get a pretty significant increase in state aid. Even though the Legislature killed a voter-approved tax surcharge for education, a last-minute state budget deal added an extra $162 million toward schools to ease the sting. Yet when state allocations were announced this spring, many districts […]
school funding
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Lewiston, Auburn schools getting more state money
Lewiston, Auburn and Portland are among the public school systems getting more state funding this year, according to state education funding figures released Tuesday. The annual allocations, posted online by the Department of Education, show how much state money is sent to districts for the upcoming year, based on the state budget. District officials need […]
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Posted inMaine
State funding for Maine’s public schools declined 9 percent from 2008 to 2015
Local residents have been picking up an increasing portion of education costs in Maine in the years since the recession, according to an analysis of state budget documents by a think tank in Washington, D.C. State funding for Maine’s K-12 public schools declined 9 percent between 2008 and 2015, says the report, released Wednesday by […]
Posted inPerspective, sj-web
The 'Florida' model for schools is in chaos
The K-12 education system in Florida — the one that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos likes to praise as a model for the nation — is in chaos. Traditional public school districts are trying to absorb the loss of millions of dollars for the new school year that starts within weeks. That money, which comes from […]
Posted inOp-Eds
The will of Maine voters should be respected
The people of Maine spoke loud and clear in November when they passed Question 2, the ballot initiative to fully fund Maine schools by increasing taxes on those people making more than $200,000 per year. For the majority of people, the question and answer were equally clear: yes, we need more funding from the state […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
School funding bill would help towns that lose major employer
A last-minute bill to change Maine’s school funding formula to help struggling mill towns was amended amid confusion and urban-rural divide by the House of Representatives on Wednesday night. It was proposed by Gov. Paul LePage is a response to recent paper mill closures. Last month, the mill in Madison announced that it will shut […]
Posted inFranklin, The Franklin Journal
RSU 9 superintendent updates selectmen on new funding law
FARMINGTON — RSU 9 Superintendent Tom Ward gave selectmen an overview Tuesday of what needs to be done to get the state’s full share of funding under the state’s essential programs and services funding. A new law enacted in May requires towns to raise 100 percent of the local required allocation to get the full […]