Judge: NC's unfunded education mandates total $677.8M

North Carolina still owes schools $677.8 million toward education for this school year and last school year, a state superior court judge ruled this week.

Judge James F. Ammons Jr. largely sided with low-income school systems and state officials, over state lawmakers and the legislatures Fiscal Research Division, in his ruling dated Monday.

The money would go toward things like early childhood education, special education and expanded support for economically disadvantaged children, principal and assistant principal pay, among other efforts.

Ammons is the newly appointed to oversee the long-running Hoke County Board of Education, et. al v. State of North Carolina, et. al, lawsuit. The lawsuit is nearly 30 years old and alleges North Carolina has failed to ensure students are able to receive an adequate education. Courts have sided with the plaintiffs, contending inadequate policy or funding or both.

The $677.8 million in question comes from a remedial plan agreed to in court and ordered to be implemented by a November ruling from the North Carolina Supreme Court. That plan calls for the state to eventually spend at least $4 billion to $5 billion more annually toward education than it currently spends. It currently spends more than $10 billion toward education.

A new Republican majority on the state Supreme Court has agreed to take back up portions of the case, however, and in the meantime has paused any transfer of funds to implement the remedial plan.

North Carolina lawmakers have intervened in parts of the lawsuit, and had argued the state owes schools $300 million less than the plaintiffs and state officials, at least in the context of the remedial plan. North Carolina Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, and House of Representatives Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, also questioned whether the real number owed was $0, asserting that the General Assembly is already providing an adequate education.

Lawmakers had argued they owed about $300 million less than other parties had argued because of a few extra expenditures and because money due last year can’t be spent last year — therefore, what wasn’t provided for last year is a moot issue.

In his ruling, Ammons did not grant the credit lawmakers were asking for, determining that the funding lawmakers wanted credit for was not in the remedial plan. He also declined to dismiss the funding that was due last year, which lawmakers had also asked for, on the grounds that the state Supreme Court had specifically ordered him to consider what was due for that year.