#NYC temporarily barred from proceeding with school budget cuts

#NYC temporarily barred from proceeding with school budget cuts

“NYC temporarily barred from proceeding with school budget cuts”

A Manhattan judge on Friday temporarily barred New York City from moving forward with school budget cuts amid plunging student enrollment.

The ruling by Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Lyle Frank, which temporarily keeps school funding at the levels outlined last year, was sought by a group of parents and teachers that are suing the city over the budget slashes.

The plaintiffs argue in their suit that the city flouted state law by passing a budget that included $215 million in cuts — 0.69% of the Department of Education’s $31 billion-plus budget — without prior approval from the Department of Education’s oversight board.

“We continue to believe that the cuts are causing irreparable harm to students and teachers,” said Laura Barbieri, the attorney from Advocates for Justice representing the petitioners, in a statement.

“We hope to win this case on the merits, as the cuts were enacted in a manner that clearly violates state law,” she said.

The city has through Monday to submit papers to vacate the order, while the plaintiffs’ attorney will respond in writing Tuesday, they said.

A hearing on the hot-button issue was scheduled for August 4.

City Hall on Friday continued to stand by its procedures in a statement to The Post.

“The budget was duly adopted by the City Council and is in accordance with all charter mandated protocols. We plan to file a motion to vacate on Monday,” said Amaris Cockfield, a spokesperson for the mayor.

Public school advocates including parents, teachers and students rallied with city council members on the steps of the Tweed Courthouse.
Public school advocates including parents, teachers and students rallied with city council members on the steps of the Tweed Courthouse.
Gina M Randazzo/ZUMAPRESS.com

The injunction comes as school administrators are making key hiring decisions before schools reopen in the fall.

Enrollment at traditional public schools in the city has plummeted 8.3% over the COVID-19 pandemic school years of 2020-21 and 2021-22, according to a shocking report released Wednesday by the city’s Independent Budget Office.

And the mass exodus of students isn’t expected to end soon, as recent projections from the Office of Student Enrollment found the city’s public schools are on track to lose 30,000 students by this fall in K-12 traditional public schools, leading to the drop in funding.

In recent weeks, the majority of City Council members have joined calls to undo the cuts, which have forced school administrators to let go of teachers and cut programs.

A letter signed by 41 out of 51 members called on the mayor to “immediately restore” the funding — while a 42nd member, Robert Holden, sent his own memo asking the DOE to redirect overhead costs at central offices to fill the gap.

A City Hall insider told The Post that the mayor is trying to come up with a short-term solution or “one-time agreement” with the City Council to smooth things over.

City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams
Mayor Adams is reportedly trying to come up with a “one-time agreement” with the City Council Speak Adrienne Adams.
Stefan Jeremiah for New York Post

“Adrienne Adams is presiding over a divided council, and it’s hurting her ability to get an agreement with the mayor,” said the source. “If she can’t get an agreement with her own members, how is she going to get an agreement with the mayor? This is embarrassing to the Council.”

Education law mandates that the Panel for Educational Policy — the citywide school board of mostly mayoral appointees — approve a yearly estimated education budget before the City Council vote. The council, however, voted to adopt the 2023 budget last month more than a week before the PEP signed off on the education funds.

The lawsuit asks the Manhattan Supreme Court to void the council’s budget vote so that the legislative body can reconsider based on the subsequent testimony of more than 70 teachers, parents and organizers.

Additional reporting by Carl Campanile

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