Gov. Cuomo will release his 2013-14 budget proposal tomorrow (Tuesday), and educators will be digging into the details.
For one thing, Cuomo embraced some of the proposals that his Education Reform Commission recently released, including some kind of state-funded pre-kindergarten program for needy kids. His budget proposal should show what he is serious about and intends to pay for.
Our Joe Spector reported today that Cuomo is expected to call for a competitive grant program to fund pre-K.
Cuomo also said in last week’s State of the State address that he supports extending the school day or school year, as the commission proposed. So we’ll see if he is able to come up with the money to pay for something like that.
Then, of course, the governor will also say by how much he believes state education aid should go up next year. Last year, he proposed an overall 4 percent increase (which was raised slightly by the Legislature), after two years of state aid cuts.
Many school districts are in tough straits financially and will be hoping for a little more. But they also know that the state is facing a $1 billion budget gap.
So there won’t be much more of anything.
