Legislative Bulletins

MASC Legislative Bulletins contain information relating to actions taken by the Massachusetts Legislature on important legislation and the state budget process as it pertains to education funding.

Legislative Bulletin: Final FY2018 House Budget

The House recently released its finalized FY2018 Budget, and MASC General Counsel Stephen Finnegan has published a new legislative bulletin describing the changes to the House Ways and Means Committee version and the Governor's proposed budget. The budget includes changes to Chapter 70 funding, the Special Education circuit breaker, regional school transportation, charter school funding, homeless student transportation, low income issues, expanded learning time grants, METCO and more.

Legislative Bulletin: House Ways and Means FY18 Budget Recommendations

MASC General Counsel Stephen Finnegan has released a new Legislative Bulletin with a detailed analysis of the Massachusetts House Ways and Means Committee's FY2018 Budget Recommendations and the potential impact on Massachusetts school districts. The proposed budget increases Chapter 70, both by increasing the health care calculation within the Foundation Budget and by including a $30/pupil minimum increase per district. From Governor BakerÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s budget proposal, the House proposed budget also increases regional school transportation by $1 million (to $62 million), increases the circuit breaker by $4 million, and increases METCO funding by $500,000. It adds a pothole account of $12.5 million for districts that have seen negative impacts from the economically disadvantaged calculation. The Bulletin includes analysis of those figures, as well as a analysis of each account related to education funding.

Legislative Alert: FBRC Implementation

At the 2016 Delegate Assembly, MASC once again called for implementation of the recommendations of the Foundation Budget Review Commission. Senator Sonia Chang-Diaz, who jointly chaired the Commission, filed a bill in this session, SD1905 - An Act Modernizing the Foundation Budget for the 21st Century which would implement the recommendations with a multi-year phase-in.

Legislative Bulletin: Governor's FY2018 Budget Recommendations

MASC General Counsel Stephen Finnegan has released a new Legislative Bulletin with a detailed analysis of Governor Charlie Baker's FY 2018 Budget Recommendations and the potential impact on Massachusetts school districts. The recommendations propose an increase in Chapter 70 education aid of approximately $90 million, with a minimum aid increase of $20 per pupil. The Legislative Bulletin includes analysis of those figures, as well as a analysis of each account related to education funding.

Legislative Bulletin October 12, 2016: An Act to Modernize Municipal Finance and Government

Read the section-by-section Summary of the final Municipal Finance and Government Modernization bill, signed on August 9, 2016.
This bill will become effective on November 7, 2016 except as noted in Chapter 218 of the Acts of 2016. The Department of Revenue has published a 17-page summary of the law and below you will find those sections that apply to school committee.

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