Chapter 70 is the primary way the state funds public school districts in Massachusetts. It’s intended to help fund programs and services needed to provide all students with a fair and adequate education.
Thanks to strong advocacy by school committees, superintendents, and educators statewide, Chapter 70 funding has increased significantly over the past two years. This year, the state raised minimum aid to $150 per student, up from $104 in FY25. I’m grateful to Sen. William Brownsberger and Rep. Dave Rogers for their ongoing support of these state funding increases for local education.
Because Belmont finalizes its budget before the state announces final Chapter 70 allocations, our town budget often underestimates Chapter 70 revenue. For FY26, Belmont budgeted $12,595,069, which is $380,350 less than what we’ll actually receive.
These additional dollars are considered one-time funds and should be allocated to one-time educational needs. Last year, Town Meeting allocated $165,000 of Belmont’s $334,000 in unexpected Chapter 70 funds to purchase a new student information system. This year’s funds could be used to support updated literacy curriculum and professional development, the continued rollout of our new math curriculum, and much-needed science textbooks.
All of these additional funds are meant to support students and new educational initiatives. I urge Belmont’s decision-makers to allocate the full amount of additional FY26 Chapter 70 funding to the School Committee this year so it can be used as intended: to benefit Belmont’s students.
Meg Moriarty, Garfield Road, School Committee Chair