A New York judge appears poised to reverse cuts to public school budgets.
Supreme Court Justice Lyle Frank suggested during a hearing Thursday that the city violated state law when passing the Department of Education’s budget for next school year.
Frank asked the attorneys to suggest language that would prevent the ordinance from infringing on the city’s overall budget. He is expected to render a decision on Friday.
In the meantime, he continued with his temporary restraining order issued on July 22 that prevented the city from moving forward with the cuts.
The decision, which temporarily keeps school funding at levels reported last year, was requested by a group of parents and teachers who have filed a lawsuit against the city over budget cuts.
The plaintiffs argued that the city flouted state law by passing a budget that included at least $215 million in cuts, without prior approval from the DOE’s oversight board.
City lawyers countered that an ’emergency declaration’ issued by Schools Chancellor David Banks allowed them to bypass the panel and implement the cuts – around 0.69 per cent more of the budget $31 billion from the DOE – at the school level.
But Frank thought the statement, while not unusual, “should have a good reason”.
“If it’s called a declaration of emergency, it really should be an emergency,” the judge said.
Frank’s official order might authorize, but probably not require, the city council to vote again on the DOE budget.
Once formally issued, the city will be able to appeal the order.
Several logistical issues remain to be resolved as principals make key hiring decisions and just weeks before schools reopen for the fall.
New York City Comptroller’s Office Brad Lander found that the initial cuts averaged $403,456 in cuts per individual school budget.
Nearly 1,200 schools were expected to have slimmer budgets amid falling student enrollment, but the fewer than 400 schools with rising enrollment were expected to get increased funding.
Laura Barbieri, special counsel for Advocates for Justice representing the plaintiffs, said the attorneys could propose language for the judge’s advance ruling that would allow no school to lose funding as a result of the order.
City attorneys also argued that DOE positions could not be divorced from the overall city budget, which was balanced and voted on as a whole. But the plaintiffs’ lawyers denied that such a remedy was not possible.
Mayor Eric Adams at an independent press conference Thursday pledged to follow court rulings.
“We will find out what the judge says and we will move on. We are going to do whatever we need to do to make sure our schools are open,” Adams said.
“I am a mayor who is committed to giving schools the resources they need, and I am proud of that,” he added.
The Legal Department declined to comment on the hearing, and the DOE did not immediately respond to questions about logistics.
Additional reporting by Bernadette Hogan
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