Title
Calling on the Pennsylvania State Senate to enact House Bill 2370 to fairly fund schools in Philadelphia and across the Commonwealth to ensure fair allocation of resources for all students.
Body
WHEREAS On June 3, 2024, House Bill 2370 was introduced to end inequities in the Pennsylvania school funding system created by state reliance on property taxes after Commonwealth Court Judge Renée Cohn Jubelirer determined it was unconstitutional; and
WHEREAS, Pennsylvania has some of the widest disparities between wealthy and low-income school districts because it relies on property taxes and has a relatively low state contribution; this disparity has deprived students in low property value school districts from having the same opportunities as students in high property value school districts; and
WHEREAS, Judge Jubelirer found that “the Education Clause, article III, section 14 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, requires that every student receive a meaningful opportunity to succeed academically, socially, and civically, which requires that all students have access to a comprehensive, effective, and contemporary system of public education”; and
WHEREAS, House Bill 2370 is a step in bringing the state’s funding system into constitutional compliance by calling for the state to pay $5.1 billion over the next seven budgets. Therefore, boosting the per-student spending of 371 school districts to match that of the state’s most successful school districts, as measured by the state Education Department’s standards; and
WHEREAS, This legislation would provide $1 billion in state support for communities facing the highest local property taxes due to state underfunding; and
WHEREAS, House Bill 2370 will provide an additional $200 million a year divided according to a revised fair funding formula between 500 school districts; and
WHEREAS, This legislation would return $530 million a year to tax payers by setting a statewide tuition rate of $8,000 for grossly overfunded cyber charter schools; and
WHEREAS, House Bill 2370 will set a minimum salary of $60 thousand for professional staff, including teachers, and a $20 an hour salary for education support professionals; and
WHEREAS, On July 7, 2023, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed House Bill 2370 by a vote of 107-94. The Bill currently sits in the Pennsylvania State Senate awaiting a committee hearing; and
WHEREAS, It is essential that the Pennsylvania State Senate take up this piece of legislation to ensure children in public schools receive their constitutional right to an adequate education; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That it hereby calls on the Pennsylvania State Senate to pass House Bill 2370 to fairly fund schools in Philadelphia and across the Commonwealth to ensure fair allocation of resources for all students.
End