A modeled zero in direct state formula aid would not mean the state paid none of a community’s school costs. Under the Blue Ribbon Commission’s proposal, nine communities could receive no direct formula aid if their required local contributions covered the baseline amounts assigned to them: Charlestown, Jamestown, Little Compton, Narragansett, Newport, New Shoreham, Portsmouth, South Kingstown and Westerly. The proposal would shift some expenses now paid locally to the state, according to Rhode Island Current’s account of the RIDE review.
The local contribution is central to the aid shift
The commission’s proposal would set a minimum municipal contribution to schools and allow additional state aid to be withheld from municipalities that fell short. RIDE warned that withholding aid could further reduce a district’s resources if its municipality did not provide the required local funding. The department also raised questions about the property-value measures used to calculate local obligations, possible double-counting of costs, and whether new reporting and oversight would duplicate existing systems, Rhode Island Current reported.
The modeled effects depend on which measure of aid is counted. Compared with the current fiscal year’s budget, 13 districts would receive less formula aid, while four public school districts would see lower total modeled state aid. The nine communities named above are projected to lose direct formula aid, Rhode Island Current reported.
The statewide estimates cover different costs
RIDE estimated that the proposal would add $525 million in annual aid compared with the fiscal year 2027 budget. That estimate breaks down to about $393 million more for traditional public school districts, $118 million for charter schools and $14 million for other schools. It excludes a separate $314 million estimate for state-only expenses, Rhode Island Current reported.
The $525 million estimate is separate from the commission’s costliest scenario. In that model, the state would cover about 58% of an expanded pool of costs, increasing the state education budget by roughly $590 million, phased in over multiple years. Formula aid made up about $1.22 billion of the state’s $1.57 billion education budget in fiscal year 2026—roughly 78%—according to Rhode Island Current.
The proposal remains under review
RIDE prepared its analysis with the Office of Management and Budget and the Division of Municipal Finance, using fiscal year 2025 school financial data as directed by fiscal year 2027 budget legislation, according to Providence Business News. The department submitted the review to the General Assembly on October 1.
The Rhode Island Foundation, which backed the commission, said it and commission members needed time to check the state’s analysis and would prepare a response. Foundation spokesperson Chris Barnett also said the foundation disagreed with some of the report’s assertions and assumptions, Rhode Island Current reported. Brenda Santos of Brown University’s Annenberg Institute, which helped facilitate the commission’s research and prepare its report, said the commission’s proposal drew on national evidence and local needs.
Legislators will decide what happens next
Rhode Island’s existing funding formula was enacted in 2010 and took effect in fiscal year 2012. It directs state funding according to student enrollment; the commission argues that the system does not adequately account for costs such as transportation and retired teachers’ pensions. The state’s share is about 38% when broader education expenses are included, according to What’s Up Newp.
Lawmakers did not enact the overhaul before the 2026 session ended on June 11. Instead, they created a 16-member legislative commission to study its feasibility. The commission must meet by October 31, 2026, submit an interim report by March 2, 2027, and issue final recommendations by September 1, 2027, according to News From The States.
Per-pupil spending is a separate measure
For FY2023, RIDE’s per-pupil expenditure chart lists total expenditures of $26,354 in South Kingstown and $28,936 in Westerly. Those figures provide two local spending points, but do not establish how all nine communities compared with the statewide average; per-pupil expenditures are also distinct from formula aid.
