The City of Philadelphia has added its backing to an ongoing lawsuit against Pennsylvania officials over the state's school funding formula.
Philadelphia filed a "friend of the court" brief Tuesday in support of a November 2014 lawsuit by the Public Interest Law Center and the Education Law Center-PA on behalf of six school districts and seven parents. The brief, filed before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court by Acting City Solicitor Sozi Pedro Tulante, argues that the Pennsylvania General Assembly's funding fails to support school districts most in need like Philadelphia. Plaintiffs appealed to the Supreme Court last May after the case was dismissed by the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania.
"The degree to which the School District is being underfunded by the state is even worse than the numbers suggest because of the District's high percentage of needy students," said Solicitor Tulante. "Only this Court's intervention can provide Philadelphia's children with the education funding they deserve from the state."
Philadelphia School District bonds were downgraded five notches in late December to Ba2 as a result of a new Moody's Investors Service rating approach. The district has been hampered by reduced state funding and losing students to charter schools. Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf has proposed increased funding for Philadelphia schools, but funds have been held up by an eight month-budget stalemate.
"The harm to Philadelphia's children described by the city's brief is being repeated throughout the Commonwealth in districts large and small, rural, suburban and urban," said Jennifer Clarke, executive director of the Public Interest Law Center. "We are grateful to the City for bringing these facts to the Court."
Philadelphia's brief supports points out that the General Assembly's funding formula does not take into account how much more expensive it is to educate children in the city because of many coming from impoverished backgrounds. The brief urges the Supreme Court to return the case to the Commonwealth Court.
