The leading education reform of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s campaign was universal pre-kindergarten, funded by a small tax increase on city residents with income over $500,000.
Governor Cuomo opposes any new taxes.
So do State Senate Republicans, who announced that the tax idea was dead.
Shame on them.
If residents of NYC want to tax themselves, why should they block it?
The real cost of the tax increase is a few dollars a day for the richest.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Agreed that if people want to tax themselves higher, they should have this option. However…this is one of the ways that inequities in school funding develop with some suburban residents taxing themselves higher and then offering stronger suburban programs than those available to inner cities or low property wealth rural areas.
Also, people can and do deduct those real estate taxes from their taxable income, making their inequity tax subsidized.
The state can play an equalizing role (as this state does) but imho, just saying “ok” to increased local taxes can create major inequities.
You’re right it can help to lead to major inequities as shown by one district Clayton (a suburb of St. Louis) spending almost $20,000 per student without any state funds whereas my rural “poor” district spends about $8,000/student with state funds included.
Somehow even after many lawsuits we still have glaring inequities of resources available to districts.
I recall in economics that would be the “opportunity cost” of not taxing the rich. (Pre-K)
When affluent towns and districts “overtax” themselves to finance their own children’s education, this has nothing to do with Mayor DeBlasio’s plan of taxing the wealthy to finance UPK for the non-wealthy. The Mayor’s plan is a wealth transfer from the super-rich to the non-rich, at last a small step in reversing the looting of America by the 1% in the last 30 years. If wealthy families’ taxes go to wealthy kids, that is a different side to the disgraceful inequity tolerated in this fabulously rich society. The side of the story that counts most for promoting equality is to transfer wealth from the very top to the vast ocean of families and kids who need it. We have a fighting mayor here so let’s fight on his side and get this story straight.
Yes, let’s get this right. Allowing a local authority to over-ride the state is dangerous precedent. There are times when it is justified.
But as many others from NY have pointed out, there are massive disparities built into the school funding system in NY and many other states.
NY people have tolerated massive inequities for a long time (include the outrageous quasi private magnet schools that screen out many applicants via standardized tests).
Perhaps its’ time for a more comprehensive approach to educational equity in NY State?
I don’t know how long you have lived, worked, paid taxes, voted in, and taught high needs low income children in financially challenged districts throughout NY state, but the NY Campaign for Fiscal Equity, headed among others by a brilliant compassionate attorney named Wendy Lecker, is suing Albany for Foundation Aid that has been misappropriated and withheld from districts for more than 8 years.
My district is one of the one percent of districts across NY state that has a growing population, especially with a low income, free or reduced lunch and breakfast population that increases each year.
The state was sued years ago and was found guilty of improper and inadequate funding. The state has admitted to this but has not given the “back pay” in funding it owes to my schools andothers like it. The court declared the state to be obliged to LEAs like mine, but the court also has stated that it does not have the authority of jurisdiction to seize funds and put them into escrow for LEAs.
It has been more than 7 years, and my district is owed between 33 and 40 million dollars.
So, yes, Joe, as an NBCT who has taught and advocated for low income English language learners for 20 years, and as a life long resident of NY City and New state, I can say unequivocally that our rich do not pay their fair share of taxes.
We should simply do what France and the Netherlands do, and most other civilized countries: restructure the tax code and make not only the uber rich pay theior fair share (I am not feeling sorry for those occupying 3 million dollar and more apartments in NY city), but we should hound the federal government to aggressively seize funds that total about $200 billion dollars that are held in off-shore tax havens by a collection of about 175 American corporations cumulatively.
This alone will not solve funding problems for schools like mine, but it will start to put a dramatic dent in resolving inequity in social infrastructure.
Robert, has anyone taken this case to a higher court? It is outrageous that affluent districts are able to spend two times (or sometimes more) that districts with high percentages of low income students.
Joe, the highest court in NY has issued several decisions on this issue over the last 20 years. The case is complex, but in a nutshell, “equity” in funding doesn’t relate to disparities in funding among localities. It relates to the baseline determination of how much money it takes to fund an “adequate” education.
Thanks for this update. So is the issue of funding equity among various distircts, for various NY Students, not part of the suit?
Wendy, if you are reading this, could you reply to Joe’s question? Or, Linda, can you get in touch with Wendy and ask if she can reply?
I can tell you, Joe, that wealthy municipalities around Westchester county get more funding in proportion to their student populations and cross sectional population’s socio-econoimic status than does a district like mine, where nearly 47% of the population is Latino and working class and poorer. Our Latino children and parents are highly intelligent, brilliat humans who simply need to be afforded opportunity and are legally entitled to have it. It is NOT the taxpayer’s fault in the township because he/she pays ample taxes. Our parents every year are generous and sacrificial as they approve our budgets.
What is sickening is that once the taxes are paid to the state thgrough income tax, the state does not allocate what it has been legally obliged to give. The foundation aid formula for changing populations, such as the one in my district, has never really been changed to reflect such changes in demographics.
It is, as you say, an outrage that the richer schools are maintaining or getting more while those with significantly less are getting less and are asked to make up for it through property taxes.
One of the most infuriating ironies is that this reform movement champions itself on the basis of fulfilling children’s “civil rights” to an education, while Albany and NYSED have, through this grotesque underfunding, deprived children of their civil rights.
This goes for our state legislature and the god-awful, demonic lizard/frog faced Andrew Cuomo, whose parents should welcome an earthquake as a relief or escape hatch from their disgusting, pernicious, self absorbed son.
His mother, Mathilde, who I worked with on a project for North Shore Hospital years ago (it was the launching of a Ronald MacDonald’s House in Manhasset) is nothing like her idiot governor son . . . .
How they can be from the same gene pool is the eight wonder of the world . . . . .
These are harsh words, but they are soft and cuddly compared to a much harsher, angrier governor who will stop at nothing to blow with any wind that will carry him to his delusional presidential post.
Andrew Cuomo’s chances of becoming president of the United States are about as robust of his chances of staying married to a Kennedy.
But then again, to his credit, Andrew Cuomo, a democratic governor, is the most intense Republican this state has ever seen . . . .
I’m with you, Ira . . . .
Good for state Republicans, there was no need for the tax as the state has a plan to pay for PreK from existing funds. Cuomo completely outplayed Wilhelm on this one, and our mayor looks pretty ameturish over it. Wilhelm needs the funds for union contracts, not pre-K, that is what this is about, he even admitted it when testifying to the state.
As for the tax, NYers are already the most taxed citizens in this country.
We are heavily taxed, but it is not nearly as taxing as your tiresome and laughable rhetoric . . . . .
Why don’t you get together with some billy goats and troll them to tears instead of the critical thinkers here . . . .