A packed agenda has been released for the August 22 meeting of the Formula Funding Workgroup, meeting at the direction of the Kirwan School Funding Commission

For county officials and others watching the Kirwan Commission deliberations, and the temporary efforts of the specially selected formula funding work group – August 22nd may be an important date.

The agenda for the meeting suggests major advances in the public conversation about both the costs of, and the sources for, the new funds envisioned by the ambitious school plan.

The full August 22 agenda is available on the Commission website:

The morning session, described above, looks like a revisiting of some of the cost framework set forth in the Commission’s interim report from January of this year. The afternoon appears to be a deeper delve into county taxes and finances than the Commission, or the formula workgroup, has yet to embark upon during its full time. The assessment of the state’s “Maintenance of Effort” laws will presumably reveal potential policy options for obliging county governments to support substantial parts of the Kirwan Commission’s policy goals.

Handouts for the meeting are typically made available on the same website as soon as they are complete – frequently the night before the meeting itself.

Can’t Make It But Sill Interested?

Interested parties not available to attend in person may want to watch the meeting through the internet live stream. To watch online:

Visit the General Assembly website…

In the lower right section of that page is a heading “Committee Meetings”

Below that heading are names of various committees, select “Appropriations” whose Chair Maggie McIntosh sits on the Kirwan Commission and the funding workgroup, and has made her committee space available for these meetings.

Prior meetings of the workgroup are also available, by clicking the Previous Committee Meetings tab, and choosing Appropriations and the date of the meeting.