Anonymous wrote:They should just raise it to 60%. Many other school districts only consider a school Title I if over 60% of the students qualify for free and reduced lunch. I wish that they adjusted what is meant by disadvantaged for families in DC. A family of three in DC with a TFI of $90,000 a year should be considered low income. Also a family of one earning $80,000 a year should be considered low income as well.
The only states that receive an adjustment based on COL are Alaska and Hawaii. You would need to get the entire formula changed. Not being partisan, but this Administration is right now going through the process of defining poverty even more narrowly than it is today, and lower the threshold for people who qualify for public assistance, leaving states to kick in more of their tax dollars or kick people off SNAP, TANF, Medicaid etc.
For some types of assistance such as Medicaid, the states augment federal dollars so that more people qualify. For example, everyone in DC with a documented disability is eligible for Medicaid. In Virginia there is a numerical cap on children who can be served, and children with severe disabilities will wait years for assistance.