HIGHER ED BUDGET STILL TO COME: With issues like affordable housing and healthcare taking up much of the air in budget talks, little has been decided regarding higher education issues — such as what sort of funding SUNY and CUNY will receive. They are also still discussing whether to expand its Tuition Assistance Program with a higher income threshold and broader eligibility, according to state Senate Higher Education Chair Toby Stavisky. “From what I’ve been told by a number of people, they have not resolved any of the higher education issues,” Stavisky, a Queens Democrat, said. “My guess is that affordable housing and health care have to be at the top of the list.” Stavisky has joined forces with her partner in the Assembly, Higher Education Committee Chair Pat Fahy, to create a campaign surrounding the expanding of TAP. — Katelyn Cordero ILLICIT CANNABIS PROBLEMS TAKE CENTER STAGE — Licensed cannabis entrepreneurs and regulators alike highlighted New York’s problem with illicit cannabis sellers at today's Cannabis Control Board meeting — a problem that is particularly acute in New York City. The Office of Cannabis Management touted the growth of the regulated market, which still pales in comparison to unlicensed cannabis sales across the state. Dispensary licensee Berkay Sebat urged CCB meeting attendees to protest Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie’s office in the Bronx on Saturday over the speaker’s resistance to including cannabis enforcement provisions in the budget. Heastie has repeatedly expressed resistance to doing policy on a range of issues during the budget process, including cannabis enforcement legislation proposed by Hochul and Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar. Meanwhile, licensees expressed frustration with the bureaucracy of the cannabis agency. “Get me out of this bureaucratic mess,” said cannabis entrepreneur Leonard Manning during public comment. “I’m stuck in OCM hell.” Manning said he is ready to open after sinking his life savings into the business, but his repeated inquiries to regulators have left him uncertain about where he stands. “The governor says she wants to revamp the OCM,” Manning said. “Governor, I’m here, ready to become the second [cannabis] store in Staten Island … Help me!” — Mona Zhang BANKS TAKES AIM AT STATE AGENCY: Schools Chancellor David Banks blasted a long-awaited report by state education officials that found most parents and educators want changes to mayoral control of city schools. The chancellor expressed disappointment with the state Education Department’s takeaways, including a finding that research shows no conclusive relationship between school governance models and student achievement like reading and math scores. The city’s graduation rates rose from 50 percent before the arrival of mayoral control, instituted in 2002 under former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, to more than 80 percent under the policy. His advice to state lawmakers who are weighing whether to extend mayoral control, set to expire June 30? Don’t let that report dissuade you, he said. “My message is do not mess around and cause this system to take 10 steps backward,” Banks told reporters during a media briefing, referring to the previous school board system in place before mayoral control was put in place. “We see community school boards all across the nation behaving badly. We don’t want to find ourselves in that place.” He also said the review does not highlight the impact of mayoral control as well as the school system’s gains compared to the rest of the state— he often touts achievements such as a reading curriculum mandate. The report, he said, was ultimately not conclusive. The comments come as lawmakers weigh Adams’ calls for a four-year extension of the policy, which they declined to tackle in ongoing budget negotiations. The state Education Department’s findings and recommendations are in line with calls from legislators linked to the powerful city teachers union to strip the mayor of his authority over the DOE’s governing body. In other news: Banks revealed to reporters that he’s been asked to testify on antisemitism before the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Education & the Workforce on May 8. Banks said he’ll be joined by two other districts, but declined to share which districts will be participating. — Madina Touré LATE BUDGET PUTS PRESSURE ON SCHOOL LEADERS: The New York State Educational Conference Board, a group of the state’s most powerful public education advocacy groups, sent a letter to lawmakers this week reminding them of the urgency to deliver a timely budget. District superintendents need to inform voters of their budgets by May 21, but state law has several deadlines that begin for some districts as soon as April 23. While budget negotiations stretched into May last year, the school aid laid out in the executive budget was largely accepted by the Legislature — making it a predictable budget process for districts. This year the fight to restore foundation aid changes proposed by Hochul has created a great deal of uncertainty, particularly for the 337 districts slated to receive cuts in the executive budget. “School districts have not had to deal with a state budget that was both untimely and uncertain since 2010 – nearly a decade and a half ago,” the letter read. “This means that districts have not had to finalize a budget proposal with large uncertainties over state aid since the property tax cap took effect (starting with the 2012-13 school year). This makes a challenging process even more difficult.” — Katelyn Cordero
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