Next Year’s School Budgets Won’t Suffer if Federal Aid Sequestered

Source: AFT
Next Year’s School Budgets Won’t Suffer if Federal Aid Sequestered—New Guidance:   Two months ago the Texas Education Agency told school districts they should plan on getting much less than expected from federal grants for school year 2012-2013, based on fear that a 2011 federal deficit-reduction law would kick in automatically next January and immediately “sequester”—i.e., cut--education aid.  Today TEA sent out a new guidance letter to school superintendents telling them, in effect, “never mind.” What changed? On July 20, TEA’s new letter notes, the U.S. Department of Education released its own authoritative guidance to states advising that any such sequestration would be implemented “in a way that would not affect funding for the 2012-2013 school year.” (The only exception would be federal funds flowing directly to districts for “Impact Aid” grants.)

Budget uncertainty caused by the federal deficit-reduction law will remain a factor in planning for the school year after next. But districts no longer have reason to hesitate to make needed expenditures for next school year out of concern over reduced federal aid.