Trends in State Education Aid to Boston

On July 9, Governor Healey signed Massachusetts’ FY27 state budget, finalizing state aid totals to municipalities throughout the state and reconvening a commission to examine how state education aid is distributed.

The share of Boston’s revenue coming from the state remains well below historical levels. Twenty years ago, state aid comprised 20.5% of the City’s revenue; in FY27, it is budgeted to make up just 10.9%. While Boston receives a sizable state aid contribution, the second-highest level in the state, other cities benefit more from the state’s local aid formula according to need.

Education aid is budgeted to increase 5.4% in FY27, the highest increase since FY20. Despite this recent uptick, education aid growth has been modest over the longer term, growing just 33.2% between FY02 and FY26. Meanwhile, education assessments, driven primarily by rising tuition costs and an increasing number of students attending charter schools, have risen rapidly over the same period.

To learn more about the trends in state education aid to Boston, read our full Research Update here: