The $43.4 billion biennial budget expected to receive final approval Tuesday includes more than $2 billion in each of the next two fiscal years for Education Cost Sharing grants.
The package also includes more than $290 million in each year distributed through a combination of non-education grants. These include: the Municipal Revenue Sharing and Stabilization grants, the Mashantucket Pequot grant, and programs that reimburse communities for a portion of local taxes lost on exempt properties, such as state land and buildings and nonprofit colleges and hospitals.
Thanks for providing the graphic; it’s very illuminating.
For a little context on how the system works, consider the adjacent municipalities, Milford and Stratford. According to 2017 census, Milford (54k) and Stratford (52k) have very comparable population sizes. However, as is demonstrated by the graphic, there is a stark difference in the two as pertains to the ECS breakdown. Stratford’s ECS funding is slated for more than double that of Milford (~$23 mill vs ~$11 mill). The respective ECS % changes are +5 for Stratford and -2 for Milford.
I would welcome thoughts and some rationale around how this is calculated. Milford has a very vibrant business base w Rt 1 corridor and downtown, but is that a determining factor in this disparity? What else explains this funding structure?
Wicked shocker. The winners are cities and gold coast. All the suburb towns get lost again.