Lamont Plans to Boost Child Care Spending in Budget, Uncertainty Looms Over K-12 Schools Funding

by Christine Stuart

Boxed in by a budget that embraces the fiscal guardrails put in place before he was elected, Gov. Ned Lamont will tinker around the edges when it comes to adjusting the two-year budget. 
Following a press conference where he said he would propose a reduction in licensing fees for educators and nurses, Lamont said he planned to up the ante for spending for day care and child care.  
“It’s a double winner for me. It helps people get back to work. And it gives that kid that very best head start,” Lamont said.

Lamont and his Budget Secretary Jeffrey Beckham said they planned to double a $50 million increase for day care spending already in the second year of the two-year budget.
“Jeff’s using some magic so I think we’ll be able to double that increase,” Lamont said. 
However, it’s unclear if the funding would come at the expense of K-12 schools. 

The upcoming fiscal year’s additional education spending of $150 million includes $68 million designated for the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) program, which is the primary grant for local districts. The remaining $82 million will be allocated across various areas, primarily benefiting regional magnet schools and to a lesser extent, charter schools.
While Beckham emphasized that the ECS funds would remain untouched, he did not provide specific information about the areas that would see reductions. 
“There are some adjustments,” Beckham said. “There were some changes that got made to the implementer language that got made, that we take a different view of and you will see that next Wednesday.” 

He mentioned that the final allocation for magnet and charter schools would be adjusted.
Currently, nearly $54 million is allocated for magnet schools, which bill communities for each student they enroll. However, recent legislation from 2023 has placed a cap on the tuition that magnet schools can charge. Therefore, if Lamont intends to reallocate some of these funds, he has the option to either reduce funding for these schools, restore their ability to charge higher tuition to towns, or explore a combination of these measures.
These options are non-starters for Education Committee Co-Chair Rep. Jeff Currey, D-East Hartford. 

“We all don’t like something in a budget, but this caucus priority was negotiated and agreed upon after many meetings during the last couple days of session,” Currey said. 
Lisa Hammersley, executive director of the School and State Finance Project, said it’s not a good proposal. 
“By cutting the legislature’s historic, bipartisan investment in K-12 education made just eight months ago, the governor is proposing a budget built on broken promises while turning his back on the needs of students, families, and educators throughout the state,” Hammersley said. 

Lamont is slated to speak before the General Assembly on February 7, marking the commencement of the 2024 session, where he will present proposed amendments for the second year of the biennial budget.
“I don’t think anyone’s losing, I think people will be gaining,” Beckham said about the budget. He said they will stay within the guard rails and there’s nothing to be construed as a “gimmick.”