Statehouse News Bureau

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Familiar School Funding Plan Introduced In New Way

By Jo Ingles

Published June 26, 2019 at 8:51 PM EDT

Reps. Bob Cupp (R-Lima) and John Patterson (D-Ashtabula). [Jo Ingles / Statehouse News Bureau]] — Rep. Bob Cupp and Rep. John Patterson

Backers of a bipartisan school funding formula overhaul are trying again to get it passed. After failing to get their new formula in the state budget, they’ve tweaked it and now it’s a stand-alone bill.

The new bill would set a base amount of funding for each student, allow extra dollars for students needing special services and would lift funding caps that are now in place for high growth school districts. Democratic sponsor John Patterson (Ashtabula) says two-thirds of the Ohio House has already signed on to it.

“We must do this now, on our watch," Patterson says.

Co-sponsor Rep. Bob Cupp (R-Lima) says this plan would finally make school funding constitutional and that most districts don’t get the funding the current formula calculates they should get.

A previous version of the Cupp-Patterson formula was criticized for flat-funding of some of the most economically challenged districts while boosting funding to some fast-growing high-wealth districts.