Chapter 70 expert discusses formula at Chelmsford event

By Chloe Gotsis/staff writer

GateHouse News Service

Posted May 12, 2010 @ 09:38 AM

Chelmsford —

Massachusetts education funding expert Roger Hatch traveled to Chelmsford last week to try to dispel some of the myths and questions surrounding Chapter 70, the education funding formula used to distribute aid to municipalities.

Hatch, the administrator of school finance for the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, spent the morning on Friday, May 7, explaining the formula and fielding questions from local officials. State Rep. Cory Atkins organized the event to help Chelmsford leaders to understand one of the state’s most complicated formulas.

Hatch told leaders that, while the formula is hard to understand, municipalities such as Chelmsford are seeing an improvement in the way state education aid is distributed.

“Even in a downtime the equity is improving,” said Hatch. “Even in a downturn, the formula can actually make some progress.”

School Committee Chairwoman Kathy Duffet told Hatch that while Chelmsford’s Chapter 70 funding level is improving it is not yet back to where it should be.

“We’re benefiting but we’re not where we should be,” she said.

Finance Committee Chairwoman Mary Frantz, said the problem with the funding formulas at the state level is things are based on when the formula was first created leaving large inequities in distribution.

“That’s in my book one of the major problems with formulas,” she said. “No one every says, ‘Let’s go back and update where things are now.’ The point in fact is if you ever recalculated where things are now you’re going to see some big losses in money in some communities and some big gains in others.”

Town Manager Paul Cohen told Atkins that from a perspective of a municipal leader if the state is going to look at reforming formulas and distribution of aid it can not just look at education aid but all local aid and all formulas.

“It can’t just be one piece,” he said. “It has to be done on a holistic approach and all formulas looked at.”

http://www.wickedlocal.com/chelmsford/features/x2084240245/Chapter-70-expert-discusses-formula-at-Chelmsford-event