In 2026, New York State must:
Update and Fully Fund the Foundation Aid Formula: The State must revise the Foundation Aid formula to meet all students’ needs and allow for improvement, while fully funding it.
The Foundation Aid formula uses 20-year-old population data, a low per-student amount on which additional funding is added depending on the particular characteristics of the student, and does not adequately reflect the range of needs of students with disabilities, English language learners, or children whose families are experiencing housing insecurity. The 2024 Rockefeller report on a proposed formula update addressed each component of the formula separately, providing a menu of options for the Governor and Legislature. A critical piece of this update is the Regional Cost Index (RCI), which has not been comprehensively revised since 2007. While Westchester County’s index was slightly increased in the last budget (from 1.314 to 1.351), the RCI overall remains outdated and fails to reflect actual costs of living and wages, ultimately leaving many high-cost districts like New York City and Yonkers inequitably funded. Updating the RCI as recommended by the Board of Regents and Rockefeller report will be key to ensuring fairer and more accurate Foundation Aid funding.
Any changes to the formula must make sure that no district is adversely impacted by a loss of funding and implementation must be carried out in ways that do not harm students, especially not further harming students impacted by federal budget cuts this past year. For example, in FY2025, we saw revisions to the allocation of Foundation Aid insufficiently accounted for the depth of student poverty in certain high-cost-of-living districts, including New York City, and for the high concentration of English learners and costs of running the nation’s largest and most diverse public school system. All changes must also take into account how each component affects the final output of funding. AQE is in full support of the recommendations that the Board of Regents made in their State Aid proposal for 2025-26, as revising the formula and ensuring adequate funding is crucial for FY2026.
Pass the Solutions Not Suspensions Bill (A118/S134): Schools must use proven alternatives to suspension that correct misbehavior and keep kids in the classroom. The state budget should invest in training for educators and school personnel, while also ensuring full Foundation Aid funding is in place to support the behavioral, emotional, and academic needs of all students.
End Jim Crow Education in East Ramapo: The state budget should incorporate reforms contained in Bill A10407 to empower public school families, fix crumbling infrastructure, hire bilingual educators, ensure access to quality classroom instruction and materials, and end the systemic racism embedded in its school governance and finances.
Fund Community Schools: A positive school climate begins with investments in strategies that work. Community schools are a proven-to-work strategy that helps foster positive school climate and student success. Many school districts are implementing this strategy to bring resources and services to schools that address students’ needs. The state must make sure that community schools have a separate funding stream in the form of categorical aid, so that school districts can implement and maintain community schools effectively.
View our other 2026 priority campaigns.
Publications & Resources
See all our latest publications here.
Take Action
See all our latest petitions and letter campaigns to contact your elected officials.
You can also look up your State Legislators and their contact information.