The final ruling in Maisto v. State of New York, also known as the Small Cities Lawsuit, really should never have been in doubt.

The lawsuit was filed in 2008 by 80 parents and students from the Jamestown, Poughkeepsie, Port Jervis, Utica, Niagara Falls, Mount Vernon, Kingston and Newburgh school districts and contends the state failed to fund the 2007 Foundation Aid Formula designed by Gov. Eliot Spitzer to provide districts statewide. Without adequate funding, the district argued, the state was depriving students of a sound and basic education as is guaranteed in the state constitution.

State Supreme Court Justice Kimberly O’Connor ruled the districts didn’t prove the state had not met its obligation to the districts even though admitting student performance in the districts was “undeniably inadequate.” O’Connor ruled the state can adjust funding levels for school districts based on fluctuations in its fiscal condition and still deliver on its obligation to ensure students have access to an adequate education. It added that the state has been addressing issues raised by school districts with each state budget and other reforms to academic standards and teacher evaluations.

The judge’s decision is likely the right one. After all, it is the job of the executive and legislative branches to set priorities and a budget, not the judiciary.

We call on the state Legislature and Board of Regents to look at the following facts compiled by Dr. Shery Wozniak in her statement in lieu of testimony notarized on Dec. 14, 2014, and then say something isn’t wrong in the way the state’s schools are funded. These are among the items included in Wozniak’s 75-page report:

As of December 2014, in the middle school, ELL students were not provided with Art/Family and Consumer Sciences/Technology/Library/Music/Health in order to provide required LEP services.

State law guarantees ELL students’ families important rights including: Sufficient translation services to ensure parents have an integral role in assisting their children’s learning and may be actively involved in their school. Parents have a right to an orientation session, in their first language, within the first semester of their child’s enrollment in a school. The session should include information on state standards, assessments, expectations and general program requirements. This is not occurring at present.

Due to recent budget cuts, Jamestown lacks the qualified teachers and support staff to provide at-risk students with an expanded platform of services, including: extra periods or time during the regular school day, additional staff to work with students in small groups or one-on-one; before- and after-school academic instruction; and summer school. As of December 2014, there was an urgent need for at least 10 additional teachers to provide appropriate and sufficient AIS and other non-academic support services for at-risk students, which is necessary to respond to the urgent need to improve overall academic performance in the district.

The majority of textbooks are 5-7 years old with some being older. Most textbooks are not aligned with the Common Core Learning Standards now being taught and tested. Text books aligned to the Common Core Learning Standards should be purchased as needed. Additional resource materials to fully implement the modules for ELA (Pre-K-8) and Math (K-10) should be purchased.

State officials recently pledged $10 million to help revitalize downtown Jamestown. Schools like Jamestown with high needs and small resources need a similar boost. A plan for the small city school districts should be a priority during the next state budget.