Adjusts the regional labor force cost index for the Hudson Valley region for the 2025--2026 school year and thereafter.
Summary
This bill amends the Education Law provision governing the regional cost index used in the state school aid formula. It keeps the existing regional cost indices in place through the 2025-2026 school year, but changes the Hudson Valley region’s index beginning in 2026-2027 and thereafter. Under the bill, Hudson Valley’s index would increase from 1.314 to 1.425, matching the Long Island/NYC index. The bill also continues the special Westchester County index of 1.351 for 2025-2026 and thereafter.
The practical effect is to increase the relative school-aid weighting for districts in the Hudson Valley region, which could result in higher state aid allocations for those districts under the Foundation Aid formula and related calculations that rely on the regional cost index. Because the regional cost index is used to reflect labor market costs for education staffing, the bill would alter how the state accounts for regional salary differences in school funding.
Impact
The bill would amend section 3602 of the Education Law, specifically the regional cost index table used in calculating state school aid. It changes the Hudson Valley region’s index for future school years and preserves the existing indices for other regions. The main affected parties are school districts in the Hudson Valley, which would likely benefit from a higher cost index in the state aid formula, and the state education finance system, which would need to apply the revised index beginning in the 2026-2027 school year.
Sentiment
Based on the bill text and available context, the measure appears to be a targeted technical-funding adjustment rather than a broadly controversial policy change. There are no recorded committee transcripts or votes in the provided material, so there is no documented opposition or support to gauge from debate. The bill’s narrow focus on one region suggests it is likely intended to address perceived inequities in regional labor costs and school funding.
Contention
The likely point of contention is regional equity in the school aid formula: increasing the Hudson Valley index could be viewed as correcting higher labor costs in that area, but it may also be seen by other regions as giving one region a larger share of limited state aid. Another possible issue is the distinction between the Hudson Valley region and Westchester County, since the bill separately preserves a Westchester-specific index while raising the broader Hudson Valley index later. No specific objections or supporters are identified in the provided record.
Relates to the regional cost index for purposes of the calculation of total foundation aid; updates the regional cost index to better reflect the differences in cost of living across the state.
Relates to the regional cost index for purposes of the calculation of total foundation aid; updates the regional cost index to better reflect the differences in cost of living across the state.
Directs the education department to study, review and report on the geographic cost variation of counties in the Hudson Valley labor force region to determine the appropriateness of the region cost index values for purposes of the public school foundation aid formula.
Amends the Education Equity and Property Tax Relief Act to set the regionalization bonus at 2% of the state's share of foundation education aid for the fiscal year starting July 1, 2025, and for each year thereafter.
Amends the Education Equity and Property Tax Relief Act to set the regionalization bonus at 2% of the state's share of foundation education aid for the fiscal year starting July 1, 2026, and for each year thereafter.