State Senate Passes deMacedo Budget Amendment to Educate Service Member Children

Vinny deMacedo

BOSTON – A Massachusetts State Senator has secured over one million dollars from the state to educate the children of service members.

During the debate on the FY20 state budget, the Massachusetts State Senate passed an amendment sponsored by Senator Vinny deMacedo (R-Plymouth) to provide $1,425,000 for local school districts for the cost of educating children of service members living on military bases in the Commonwealth.

The funding will replace shortfalls in federal funding for the communities of Bourne, Bedford, and Lincoln who educate children from families on Joint Base Cape Cod and Hanscom Air Force Base.

“In recognition of the sacrifice made by our military members and their service to our communities, our public schools educate these children without knowing whether the costs of that education will be reimbursed,” said Senator deMacedo.

“However, the men and women who serve on these bases provide a service not only to those communities, but to the entire Commonwealth and it is only right that we, as a state, share the responsibility of educating these students.”

Public school districts that have military bases within their district educate those children in their schools.

As part of the formula used to calculate state aid to school districts, the state examines local property taxes. Because the land that military bases are located on is federally owned, it is not taxed. This adversely affects school districts who are not receiving additional state aid for the students that reside on military bases.

There is federal aid, known as Impact Aid that is used to help districts supplement their budgets for educating these students. Because of the shortfalls of this federal aid, it is important that the Commonwealth has stepped up to assist these school districts.

By passing this budget amendment, the Commonwealth is recognizing not only the sacrifices made by our service men and women, but also the sacrifices made by the school districts who educate their children. Now, the Commonwealth can share in the cost of educating these children and help to support our school districts who are educating them.

By TIM DUNN, CapeCod.com News Center