We must continue the fight to eliminate the severe racial inequities that continue to plague our education system. Too many children,  particularly African American, other minorities, and underprivileged people from all groups have been subjected to lesser educational opportunities leading to lesser opportunities for success in their personal and professional lives.       

      Per Section 123(k) of the Public School Code, the 2023 BEFC is charged with reviewing the distribution of state funding for basic education to Pennsylvania’s 500 school districts and providing a report of its findings to the General Assembly by November 30, 2023.

In 2016, the General Assembly enacted the basic education funding formula recommended by the original BEFC. That formula looks at the student population in each school district, its size and its ability to raise taxes locally  to determine each school district’s fair share of funds that the General Assembly distributes through the formula. The original BEFC’s formula has been in effect for eight fiscal years with only minor adjustments.

The BEFC is a 15-member group consisting of three members from each legislative caucus and three members of the administration.

     February 7, 2023

The Commonwealth Court Judge Renée Cohn Jubelirer ruled that Pennsylvania’s school funding system is unconstitutional and must be reformed. In a 786 page decision the court found that

“All witnesses agree that every child can learn. It is now the obligation of the Legislature, Executive Branch, and educators, to make the constitutional promise a reality in this Commonwealth.” The court order calls for the “respondents, comprised of the Executive and Legislative branches of government and administrative agencies with expertise in the field of education, the first opportunity, in conjunction with Petitioners, to devise a plan to address the constitutional deficiencies identified herein.”