DC Council's First Budget Vote Advances $15.7 Million in New Funding for Public Charter School Students

WASHINGTON, DC — Yesterday, the DC Council completed its first vote on the FY27 budget, generating approximately $15.7 million in additional formula funding for public charter schools. By raising the proposed Uniform Per Student Funding Formula (UPSFF) increase from 2.55% to 3.8%, the Council narrowed the $2,000 per-pupil funding gap between charter students and their DCPS peers by roughly 30%.

That $2,000 gap would have meant that a public charter school serving 400 students would have operated with roughly $800,000 less each year than a comparable DCPS school — the equivalent of several teachers, a counselor, and a reading or math specialist.

“We understand difficult decisions in a tight budget year, but we have to be careful that as a city we don’t deprioritize the needs of some of our students furthest from opportunity, many of whom are Black and Brown, whose parents are longtime natives, and who have chosen the academic program that works best for their children,” said Ariel Johnson, Executive Director of the DC Charter School Alliance. "With this vote, the Council signaled that it believes in the promise of the UPSFF, a nationally recognized funding formula that should be lauded for its strong emphasis on equity between the sectors, benefiting all public school students.”

This budget season has been one of the most challenging in recent years, eroding the UPSFF and disregarding the School Reform Act that has governed how the District funds schools for more than 30 years. The proposed FY27 budget would have widened existing funding disparities for the nearly half of DC public school students who attend public charter schools. 

In response, DC's charter community mounted an unprecedented advocacy effort: more than 320 testimonies before the DC Council, over 19,700 advocacy emails to Councilmembers and the Mayor's office, and nearly 400 advocates filling the Council Chamber last week.

"Chairman Mendelson championed funding equity throughout this budget season, and Councilmembers Zachary Parker, Wendell Felder, Brooke Pinto, Doni Crawford, and Janeese Lewis George have joined him in prioritizing closing the gap,” said Johnson. “The Alliance worked with families, students, educators, and school leaders who refused to be ignored. This is a collective win — we'll be coordinating with Councilmembers to identify additional funding to help narrow the gap before the final vote on June 23."

In addition to the UPSFF increase, the Council's budget includes $2.7 million in FY27 funding for St. Coletta PCS, $500,000 to partially restore Adult Education and Literacy Act grant funding, $42.3 million in charter facilities allotment increases for FY29–FY30, and additional investments in tutoring, literacy, and career training.

The Council's final budget vote is scheduled for June 23. The DC Charter School Alliance will continue advocating to find additional FY27 funding and ensure these investments are protected through the budget’s final passage.

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About the DC Charter School Alliance

The DC Charter School Alliance is the 501(c)(3) advocacy organization representing DC's public charter schools — 66 nonprofit organizations operating 132 schools that serve nearly half of all public school students in the District, from age 3 through adulthood. The Alliance advocates to ensure every public charter student has the resources and support they need to thrive. Learn more at www.dccharters.org.