Democrats' education funding report says Pennsylvania owes $5B more to school districts

A commission reviewing how Pennsylvania distributes money to public schools narrowly approved a report Thursday that suggests the state is underfunding districts by more than $5 billion and should begin immediately to close that gap.

The vote on the report by the Basic Education Funding Commission was backed by Democrats and members of Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration. Republicans and one Democrat on the commission opposed it, resulting in an 8-7 vote.

A key recommendation in the report said the state should immediately begin to close a school funding gap of more than $5 billion, phasing in the increased aid over seven years.

The report differs somewhat from what school districts that won a landmark court case want from the state. The districts’ lawyers proposed a $6.2 billion increase in state aid to be phased in over five years.