Op-Ed: Stop Albany's Regionalization Schools Scheme
By Senator Jack Martins
Long Island schools are regularly ranked among the very best in New York State, ranking our children highly competitive at universities and in job markets as well. That’s part of the Long Island reality: our significant taxes are driven by our shared commitment to education outcomes.
Most school districts in our Senate District get less than 10% of their budgets from Albany, with local taxpayers shouldering over 90% of the direct costs. That is the complete inverse of a good portion of the state whose budgets are nearly entirely funded by the state.
And it speaks to the conscientious investment Long Island families make in their priorities. Our schools are the backbone of our communities.
That’s why Albany’s most recent "Regionalization" Order is so insulting. Through yet another “emergency” edict, the Board of Regents has declared that our public-school districts must comply with a new plan that seeks to create “equitable”opportunities for all students.
Naturally, there’s been an outcry by parents, educators and school boards alike as the plan gives the BOCES superintendent authority over local school resources.
So, the people that you lawfully elected to make decisions – our school boards – can now be circumvented by Albany bureaucrats. It means the resources secured by your local school taxes can now be "redistributed" to other districts, giving the state control of our tax base too – all in the name of“equity.”
Conspicuously missing from this mandate are the “Big Five,” large cities like New York and Buffalo that are home to most of the state’s failing schools.
That’s in keeping with the Governor’s larger pattern of attacking suburbs.
Rather than tackle failing districts head-on, her answer is to reconfigure those that are successful. It’s the politics of jealousy, and not only is it wrong-headed, it’s also illegal.
We believe our state constitution prohibits plans like this. Albany bureaucrats are not elected. Our school boards are.
But the issue reaches beyond classrooms. This misguided scheme will alter the fabric of our communities: Schools are the backbone of Long Island and define our economic, social and cultural structures. They drive property values, economic growth, and influence civic engagement and even public services.
The Coalition of New York State School Board Members agrees, stating “These regulations represent an overreach, bypassing legislative authority to enact mandates that ignore the unique needs of our communities.” Which is why several districts have together begun a lawsuit.
To that end, we’re responding legislatively too. Assemblyman Jake Blumencranz and I have proposed the “Our Schools, Our Rules Act” which would prohibit any state-mandated regionalization policies that force school districts to share resources, operations, or services, to preserve the autonomy of our districts and protect your investment in your schools and in your children.
After all, if the state really knew how to educate kids, why are they in this predicament? Why are the independent Long Island school boards so much more successful?
I can tell you why. Because bureaucrats in faraway places never do as good a job as the local officials you elect, those neighbors who are part of the very communities they represent.
This Order is nothing short of an attack on our suburban communities.
You don’t rob Peter to pay Paul, and you don’t build success by attacking it.
Encourage your local school board to oppose this. Tell Albany that when it comes to our children, we’ll take on any fight, any time.
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Senator Jack Martins represents the north shore of Nassau County (Oyster Bay, Glen Cove, North Hempstead) in the New York State Senate (District 7)