The Cobb County Board of Education voted 7-0 Thursday to petition the state to return $565,636,709 to the county of austerity cuts made since 2003 “as a result of an improving state economy.”

Board member David Banks said, “That’s our money from county taxpayers. The public needs to let legislators know: ‘We want our money, and we want it in Cobb County classrooms.’”

Also, the board wants the state to cap Cobb’s participation in the state’s Quality Basic Education funding program at $100 million instead of the current $132.2 million, reducing the amount that is subtracted from the Cobb County School District’s state funding.

Another concern on the board’s list of legislative priorities is for the state to require a fiscal impact statement for all legislation that impacts a school district’s revenues or expenditures.

The board also wants the state to decrease the amount of student assessment requirements and the number of state-mandated assessments and surveys requiring computing devices.

Information: cobbk12.org.

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Angie McBrayer, ex-wife of James Aaron McBrayer, leans her head on her son Sam McBrayer as she and her three children and two grandchildren (from left) Jackson McBrayer, 3, Piper Jae McBrayer, 7, Katy Isaza, and Jordan McBrayer, visit the grave of James McBrayer, Thursday, November 20, 2025, in Tifton. He died after being restrained by Tift County sheriff's deputies on April 24, 2019. His ex-wife witnessed the arrest and said she thought the deputies were being rough but did not imagine that McBrayer would die. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC