Federal Foundation Assistance Monitor

(EARLY EDUCATION) Most States Hold Line against Pre-K Funding Cuts

Facing massive budget cuts, most states decided to protect funding for early childhood education, 29 states and the District of Columbia chose to increase or hold steady funding for pre-kindergarten education, according to an analysis the Pew Center on the States.

Legislators added dollars for existing pre-k initiatives in 13 states and approved new programs in two others, creating a modest national net gain in funding despite cuts in ten states, the analysis says.

The report is of critical interest to pre-K educators and others who programs depend on early education state funding streams. It shows the advantages of one particular funding strategy for early education.  Nine states and the District of Columbia include pre-k in their school funding formulas, allocating per-child funding for 4-year-olds based on enrollment, just as they do for K-12 students, the report says. All of these states expect spending to grow as more parents choose high-quality early education for their children.  By contrast, in all the states that reduced investments, pre-K is funded through the general appropriations process, which is more vulnerable to cuts, the report says.

The report also provides examples of how state legislatures and program administrators from Florida, Maine, Maryland and Oregon have used resources from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – the federal stimulus package – to bolster pre-K programs in these lean fiscal times.

The report also showed that 13 legislatures increased investment in existing programs by nearly $130 million; among the states suffering the 10 worst budget shortfalls (measured as a percentage of the budget), only Connecticut and New York approved a cut to early education programs.

Info: www.pewtrusts.org/news_room_detail.aspx?id=55570

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