The Connecticut Supreme Court today at 11:30 a.m. is releasing a long-awaited decision in an education-funding lawsuit brought to establish that children have a right to an “adequate” education, not merely a free and public education.
The decision will be accompanied by two dissenting and concurring opinions, indicating a deeply divided court. The justices have been wrestling with this case since 2008.
The suit was filed by the Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding, which maintains a web site with detailed background, arguments and relevant documents. The coalition’s amended complaint can be read here.
The plaintiffs call the case, CCJEF vs. Rell, “the most important, far-reaching education case in this state in 30 years.
The coalition was joined in an amicus brief by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, which says the state’s current system of funding education is insufficient. Under its major education-aid program, the state now spends about $1.9 billion a year.
The decision comes as Gov. M. Jodi Rell and the legislature are wrestling with a budget crisis that is expected to leave the next governor with a deficit of $3.8 billion.