Proposed Baltimore budget includes hike in education spending required by Blueprint: ‘It was a gut punch’

A steep spike in state-mandated education funding will strain Baltimore’s budget for the coming year, limiting opportunities for new spending, the proposed budget unveiled by Mayor Brandon Scott on Thursday showed. The $4.4 billion spending plan includes $392.6 million in required education spending, more than 11% of the city’s $3.5 billion in operating expenses. That figure represents $79.4 million more than Baltimore spent on education in fiscal year 2023, the first year since the implementation of the state Blueprint for Maryland’s Future plan, a 10-year effort to improve education by injecting billions of dollars into public schools, though local systems are responsible for providing some of the funding.