State Appeals Court Decision On Education Funding Gap, Malloy: Does Not Negate Urgency To Act

News release from Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen:

Attorney General George Jepsen today issued the following statement to announce that the state will seek a direct appeal to the Connecticut Supreme Court of the ruling issued by the Superior Court last week in the case of Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding v. Rell:

“Under our system of government, state education policy is determined by the Legislative and Executive Branches and implemented under a strong tradition of local control by municipal school boards and, ultimately, teachers. This decision would wrest educational policy from the representative branches of state government, limit public education for some students with special needs, create additional municipal mandates concerning graduation and other standards, and alter the basic terms of educators’ employment–and entrust all of those matters to the discretion of a single, unelected judge.

“For the public and legislators to trust the legitimacy of such a dramatically new system and the policies it produces, they must know that the ruling mandating it is legally correct. There are strong arguments that the trial court exceeded its authority and the standards articulated by the Connecticut Supreme Court, and so today we are asking that court to review this ruling.

“Despite its order, the trial court correctly determined that the state far exceeds its minimum constitutional obligations for providing equitable access to adequate education. Nevertheless, the ruling identified profound educational challenges that remain and must continue to receive serious and sustained attention–and action–at every level of government. Nothing about this appeal prevents policymakers from immediately addressing those challenges, and I urge them to do so without delay.”

Please click here to view a copy of the state’s petition to the Supreme Court.

Response from Governor Malloy:

“We understand and accept the Attorney General’s legal rationale for pursuing this course of action. The Attorney General’s decision to appeal does not negate the urgency to take action for students. It would be prudent to address the systemic problems in our educational system, particularly fair funding, in a serious manner once and for all in the 2017 legislative session. Legislative action is always preferable to a judicial decision.

“Let us take this opportunity to act on behalf of all of our students. We know that we do not need to wait for the legal outcome to start improving outcomes for our students. We’ve begun to make progress by investing hundreds of millions of dollars in education directed at the students who need it most. These investments are already paying off with students across the board showing progress in math and reading on state tests, but we know there is more work to do.

“We hope that this moment marks the start, rather than the stalling, of a statewide dialogue around finding a better way to fund our schools, which ultimately results in a better solution for our students and communities. We should act together, and we should do it sooner rather than later.”

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10 comments

  1. Bedroom communities in Fairfield County and the Greater Hartford Area get most of the state education bucks while urban school districts like Bridgeport, Waterbury, Hartford and Torrington get the pittance? Jepson is wrong to appeal the judge’s ruling.

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  2. Hey George,
    Have you been reading about our local BOE?
    They are on strike because they don’t like one member.
    Do you feel confident entrusting these decisions to local governments that allow this to happen?
    We have a mayor who won’t even address the urgency of getting the board back to work because he wants to be able to name his own BOE.
    Not so good an idea in Bridgeport, George.
    I’ll take the judgement of a single superior court judge over four BOE members who refuse to meet on important matters.

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  3. Bobby, while driving Senator Moore around during the primary, I had the pleasure of meeting a State Senator and a State Rep from other communities. Both told me the State Legislature reads OIB to see what’s going on in Bridgeport. Having said that I’m absolutely sure they know what’s going on here and the dysfunction of the BBOE.

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  4. I wouldn’t describe three legal and one illegal BOE members blatantly refusing to fill their statutory obligations to over 21,000 BPS students “dysfunctional.” I would call it more of a “tantrum.”

    Once again, why are all three Republican BOE members aligning themselves with the only Democrat on the BOE completely in Testa and Ganim’s back pocket?

    This is why most in this city have no respect for the Republican Party in Bridgeport. They are not an opposition party, they are subservient to the Democratic Party, and will settle for the few crumbs they are offered from the corrupt Democratic leadership. A couple of seats on boards and commissions, a seat or two on the BOE, a Republican Registrar, you say Great! We are all set.

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  5. Schools Case Awaits Round 2 Remedy
    www .newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/david_rosen_schools_case/

    Attorney General George Jepsen again will get his ass kicked by Attorney David Rosen who is one of the best around, in fact Jepsen needs to check with New Haven and Bridgeport City Attorneys and ask them how much it cost their cities’ taxpayers in lawsuits they have lost to David Rosen. Malloy and Jepsen have no problem in losing taxpayers’ money but more importantly they have no answers for funding the education of our children.

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