What is the Basic Education Funding Commission
The official 2023 BEF Commission website can be found here.
The Commission is a bipartisan group of state officials who are tasked with making recommendations about how to improve our system of funding public education.
The work of this Commission is an important part of addressing the Commonwealth Court decision in William Penn School District, et al. v. Pennsylvania Department of Education et al. In that case, Judge Jubelirer found that the General Assembly has failed to meet our constitutional duty to provide a “thorough and efficient system of public education” by both underfunding and unfairly funding public schools across Pennsylvania.
In order to fulfill our constitutional obligation, Pennsylvania public schools must have both adequate and equitable resources – like smaller class sizes, up-to-date textbooks, and safe school buildings – so that every child has a meaningful opportunity to succeed academically, socially, and civically.
History
The original BEF Commission was established in June of 2014. Its recommendations led to the enactment of the current Basic Education Funding Formula in 2015. You can download a copy of the last Commission’s full report, watch its hearings, and learn more about the 2014 Commission on their website.
The Commission was scheduled to reconvene five years later in 2020, but was postponed with a new due date of November 30, 2023 for its next report.
Current Commission Membership
The BEF Commission is made of 15 members— 4 Education Committee chairs, plus 2 additional legislators each from the four General Assembly Caucuses (House Democrats, House Republicans, Senate Republicans, and Senate Democrats), plus 3 members of the Administration.
| BEFC Membership (15 members – 3 from each caucus and 3 from the administration) | |
| May 2023 Commission | |
| Education Chairs * | |
| House Democrat | Rep. Pete Schweyer |
| House Republican | Rep. Jesse Topper |
| Senate Republican | Sen. David Argall |
| Senate Democrat | Sen. Lindsey Williams |
| At-Large (appointed by Speaker and Pro-Tempore in consultation with Caucus leaders) | |
| House Democrat | Rep. Mike Sturla (Co-Chair) |
| House Democrat | Rep. Mary Isaacson |
| House Republican | Rep. Jason Ortitay |
| House Republican | Rep. Ryan Warner |
| Senate Democrat | Sen. Vincent Hughes |
| Senate Democrat | Sen. Nick Miller |
| Senate Republican | Sen. Kristin Philips-Hill (Co-Chair) |
| Senate Republican | Sen. Greg Rothman |
| Administration | |
| PDE Secretary * | Dr. Khalid Mumin (designee Marcus Delgado) |
| PDE Deputy Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education * |
Jeffrey Fuller (designee Angela Fitterer) |
| Gov. appointee from within administration | Natalie Krug (Budget Office) |
| * denotes a designee may serve | |
Basic Education Funding Commission Hearings
The BEF Commission will hold hearings and receive testimony on the current system of funding public education and what improvements can be made. At the end of this process, the Commission is expected to issue a report with recommendations. The General Assembly will then have to take legislative action to put any or all of these recommendations in place for the students and families of Pennsylvania.
The current schedule for the Basic Education Funding Commission Hearings is:
October 5 in Hazleton
October 11 in Pittsburgh
October 12 in Lemont Furnace
November 2 in Enola
November 9 in Bedford
Hearing details and agendas will be announced closer to the dates. The public can submit comments to be entered into the record via the Contact Us section of the commission’s website: basiceducationfundingcommission.com.
Videos of BEF Commission hearings and all testimony received will be shared on this website so that you can follow along.
Basic Education Funding Commission – 9/28/23
The Basic Education Funding Commission met to hear testimonies including the discussion of trends in basic education funding formula factors.
Agenda & Testimony
Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials
Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators
- Dr. Sherri Smith, Executive Director
- Dr. Jay Burkhart, Superintendent, South Western School District
- Dr. Nathan Van Deusen, Superintendent, South Eastern School District
Documents
Basic Education Funding Commission – 9/21/23
The Basic Education Funding Commission met to hear testimonies including the discussion of equity and perspectives of teachers, local school district, and the community.
Agenda & Testimony
Panel One
- David Lapp, Director of Policy Research, Research for Action
- Marc Stier, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Policy Center
Panel Two
- Laura Boyce, Pennsylvania Executive Director, Teach Plus
- Kristen Haase, Senior Policy Fellow and SDOL Teacher, Teach Plus
- Dominque Botto, Leader, POWER Interfaith
- Brenda Morales, Leader, POWER Interfaith
- Reverand Dr. Gregory Edwards, Chief of Staff, POWER Interfaith
Panel Three
Basic Education Funding Commission – 9/14/23
The Basic Education Funding Commission met to hear testimonies including the discussion of perspective of local superintendents and teachers and impact of trauma on learning.
Agenda & Testimony
Panel One:
- Dr. Tony Watlington, Superintendent, School District of Philadelphia
- Christopher Dormer, Superintendent of Norristown School District
Panel Two:
- Arthur Steinberg, President, American Federation of Teachers-PA
- Jerry Jordan, President, Philadelphia Federation of Teachers
- Ashley Cocca, School Counselor, School District of Philadelphia
- Fatoumata Sidibe, Student, William W. Bodine High School
Panel Three:
- Donna Cooper, Executive Director, Children First
- Dr. Joan Duval Flynn, Chairperson, Trauma Informed Education Coalition
- Mary Beth Hays, Director of Philadelphia Healthy and Safe Schools, Temple University
- Dr. Shawn Ginwright, Founder and CEO, Flourish Agenda
Written Testimony Only:
Basic Education Funding Commission – 9/13/23
The Basic Education Funding Commission met to hear testimonies on the Commonwealth Court’s ruling that PA’s school funding system is unconstitutional and how other states are handling school funding.
Basic Education Funding Commission – 9/12/23
The Basic Education Funding Commission met to hear testimonies on a new study regarding adequate school funding, perspective of local superintendents, and school facilities’ environmental impact.
Basic Education Funding Commission – 6/7/23
The Basic Education Funding Commission held a public hearing to review a presentation provided by the PA Department of Education on the basic education funding formula.
Basic Education Funding Commission – 5/10/23
The Basic Education Funding Commission held met to introduce members, elect co-chairs, and Review of BEFC, Pursuant to Section 123 of the Public School Code
News
Letter: BEFC must meet the moment
Pennsylvania is at a public education crossroads. Following the ruling of the Commonwealth Court earlier this year that labeled the state’s system of funding public education unconstitutional, the Basic Education Funding Commission (BEFC) is holding several hearings...
Lawmakers grapple with fixing Pa.’s unconstitutional school funding system
Months after a landmark court decision found Pennsylvania's public school funding system unconstitutional, a commission tasked with resolving statewide disparities held its first series of hearings this week. The hearings kick off a process that could affect...
Panel launches hearings on revamping Pennsylvania school funding system
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Fixing Pennsylvania's school funding system is the mission of a panel that has begun a series of 10 hearings across the state. The 15-member Basic Education Funding Commission is gathering input on making K-12 school funding more...
Six takeaways from the first week of hearings to change Pa.’s school funding system
Pennsylvania lawmakers kicked off their hearings this week on how to change the state’s unconstitutional school funding system, and the scope of the challenge was on display: both in terms of dollars and how to distribute them, and the urgency of the needs facing...
Pennsylvania’s school funding commission starts work on a new funding formula
On the heat-soaked steps of the Philadelphia School District building Thursday, education advocates, teachers, and elected officials sought help for city students forced to learn in underfunded schools. “Children are in crisis,” said Maritza Guridy, deputy director of...
Pa. lawmakers on the clock to get new school funding system in place
Education advocates behind the lawsuit that declared Pennsylvania’s school funding system unconstitutional put lawmakers on notice on Wednesday that they expect a “reasonable timeline” for the full implementation of a formula that is fair and equitable. “If it’s not a...
Study: Pennsylvania public schools underfunded by $6.2 billion
Pennsylvania needs to increase its investment in public schools by $6.2 billion to help students meet graduation rate goals and proficiency on state exams, according to a school finance expert. Penn State assistant professor Matthew Kelly told a panel of policymakers...
Lawmakers were told Pa. schools need an extra $6.2 billion, on the first day of school funding hearings
Pennsylvania school districts need an additional $6.2 billion to adequately educate students, according to a new analysis presented to lawmakers Tuesday. The analysis by Matthew Kelly, the Penn State professor who served as an expert witness for plaintiffs in the...
Pennsylvania lawmakers push for fair school funding
ALLENTOWN, Pa. (WHTM) — State courts have ruled that Pennsylvania unfairly and unconstitutionally funds its public schools. Lawmakers formed the Fair Funding Commission to come up with a fix, starting with testimony on Tuesday in Allentown. Poorer districts like...
Pa. public schools underfunded by $6.2 billion, study finds
Pennsylvania needs to increase its investment in public schools by $6.2 billion to help students meet graduation rate goals and proficiency on state exams, according to a school finance expert. Penn State assistant professor Matthew Kelly told a panel of policymakers...