ROCKVILLE, Md. — Maryland’s General Assembly session is over, but the fight for school funding continues.
The Maryland State Education Association has kicked off a new campaign to push Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan to put $68 million toward education in a funding formula called Geographic Cost of Education Index (GCEI) designed to address the needs of jurisdictions where the cost of education is higher. Baltimore City, Montgomery, Prince George’s and Frederick counties are among the systems with a higher cost of education.
Speaking at a briefing with reporters Monday, Montgomery County Council President George Leventhal repeated his opinion that Hogan should release the $68 million voted on by Maryland lawmakers.
Hogan has said fully funding the GCEI was simply too expensive and that he needed to address the state’s multi-million-dollar structural deficit. Also, Hogan has pointed out that other governors, including former Gov. Martin O’Malley, did not fund the GCEI during the first year of their terms.
Leventhal argues that holding back the money won’t make a dent in the state’s deficit, and that Maryland is on sound financial footing with high ratings among bond agencies.
“We’re already a AAA-rated state,” Leventhal says. “And one of the reasons that our state has such a good reputation is that we have such good schools. We can’t underinvest in those schools.”
On Monday, the Maryland State Education Association scheduled an event at Walter Johnson High School in Bethesda, Maryland, to repeat the appeal that Hogan should release the $68 million in GCEI funding.
On Monday, Prince George’s County Schools’ Chief Executive Officer Kevin Maxwell appeared with local lawmakers to call on the governor to release the funds that the Maryland State Education Association says would bring $20 million to that school system. Montgomery County would see $17 million added to the budget if Hogan changes his position.
The governor has until June 30, the end of the fiscal year, to add the money voted on by lawmakers in this year’s General Assembly session in Annapolis.
WTOP’s Kate Ryan contributed to this report.