Assemblyman Colton (D – Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach, and Dyker Heights) says that the Governor promised to use state education monies to support high needs schools in a more productive way, but there were few specifics on how he proposed to do this.

“The executive budget needs to include monies to repay the Campaign for Fiscal Equity lawsuit (CFE). For the monies that are due, the budget must reimburse high needs districts such as NYC. This is particularly important considering the billions of dollars that the state owes in high needs districts over past short funding under the CFE court decisions,” Colton stated.

“Monies should be directed to be used to reduce class size, support remedial programs and enrichment programs so that both underperforming children as well as high performing students will be able to reach their highest potential. The budget should also include the monies to support arts, music, and physical education, as well as ESL programs to reach out to the needs of all students. In addition, more childcare monies should be included in the budget so parents will be able to increase their financial ability to support their families,” Colton said.

“I will be preparing petitions to support the inclusion of these programs and monies in the state budget,” Colton added.