Our public schools and colleges are grappling with a historic fiscal crisis which threatens to undermine the quality of the finest public education system in the nation. As educators, parents, school committee members, students and others who testified at recent public hearings have made clear, we are all counting on the FY2027 budget to alleviate the impact of this crisis.

On April 15, the House Committee on Ways and Means released its FY2027 budget proposal, which acknowledges the financial pressures bearing down on school districts and campuses and proposes several important steps to begin to mitigate the harm. These include fulfilling the Student Opportunity Act, exceeding minimum student-aid increases from last year with a $160 per-pupil amount, adding funds for special education, setting up reserves to address potential funding losses attributable to declines in enrollment of English language learners, and bolstering funds for student support programs at community colleges and state universities.

Yet there is still much more work that we can do together to ensure that all of our public schools and colleges have the resources they need to provide the high-quality education that every student in every district and at every campus deserves. That is why we are advocating for several amendments that would further strengthen the House’s proposal:

• Amendment #41 filed by Rep. Margaret Scarsdale - Ensuring Adequate and Equitable Funding for Public Education
• Amendment #46 filed by Rep. Margaret Scarsdale – Regional School Transportation
• Amendment #316 filed by Rep. Jim Hawkins – In District School Transportation
• Amendment #389 filed by Rep. Sean Reid - Community Schools Program
• Amendment #459 filed by Rep. Leigh Davis – Rural School Aid
• Amendment #677 filed by Rep. Pat Duffy - Special Commission on Adjunct Faculty
• Amendment #1066 filed by Rep. Brandy Fluker-Reid – Charter School Reimbursements
• Amendment #1203 filed by Rep. Jim Hawkins – Strengthening the Special Education Circuit Breaker Program
• Amendment #1284 filed by Rep. Orlando Ramos – Chapter 70 Inflation Adjustment
• Amendment #1301 filed by Rep. Alice Peisch – Benefits for teachers
• Amendment #1460 filed by Rep. David Rogers - Restore Education Support Funding through UMass CBAs and SUCCESS Grants
• Amendment #1693 filed by Rep. Marjorie Decker - Maintaining Patient Access to Care
• Amendment #1713 filed by Rep. Marjorie Decker – Whole Child Grant Program

The House is set to begin debating its budget on April 27, so we ask that you write to your Representative right away to urge them to co-sponsor and actively support these important amendments. We also ask that you call your Representative to follow up on your email. You can find your Representative's phone number by clicking here.