Infante-Green last week ordered state Treasurer James Diossa to withhold $8.5 million in state aid from the city, arguing the city owes the school district nearly $30 million in total under state law. The city filed a motion to block the hold, and the money is currently on hold.

The decision in the controversial legal battle The overfunding of schools comes as the district prepared to cancel all winter sports as early as next week and take away RIPTA bus passes from up to 1,700 students, who rely on public transportation to get to school. Other cuts are being considered, including eliminating special education teaching assistants and other jobs.

It was not immediately clear whether Friday’s decision would ensure the sport could continue this winter. The district has asked the city for $10.9 million to restore the long list of cuts, and has refused to say what the cuts will be if it only receives part of that money.

In a letter to families Thursday evening, Superintendent Javier Montañez said that if the money does not arrive, the district will begin taking steps to reduce spending next week. The letter said principals and coaches would be notified Wednesday to cancel recruiting and all winter and spring sports, and that the RI Public Transit Authority would also be notified Wednesday of the intent to change the contract with the department school.

The district issues RIPTA bus passes to high school students rather than using yellow school buses, and currently gives the passes to students who live more than a mile from the school. The new plan would extend that to 2 miles.

Montañez’s letter also said the U.S. Department of Justice would be notified next week that the district would stop paying teachers’ tuition to become certified to teach English learners. The district is required by the DOJ to certify more teachers in order to comply with a 2018 regulation.

More layoff notices could come next Friday, Montañez said.

“PPSD must begin making a series of difficult decisions to stabilize our finances, and I don’t want our students, families and staff to be surprised,” Montañez said.

It is not yet clear what impact Friday’s court ruling will have on the plan.

In court Wednesday and Thursday, officials from the school department and Mayor Brett Smiley’s administration argued they would suffer significant financial harm if the case was decided in favor of the other.

School officials cited a letter from Governor Dan McKeewho said the state would not provide additional funds.

“At a time when the state already has a deficit of nearly $400 million, the state can no longer continue to cover the deficit caused by the city’s lack of funding,” McKee wrote in the letter dated 28 October in Infante-Green. “Moreover, it would be fundamentally unfair to other communities who have operated their school districts within their budget and state-allocated resources.” »

Lanphear questioned why the school department didn’t ask the RI General Assembly for money, given emergency cash flow issues.

“With all due respect to His Excellency the governor, he is not appropriating money,” Lanphear said.

House Speaker Joseph Shekarchi and Senate President Dominick Ruggerio said in a statement Friday that “if the school department were to make such a funding request, it would be carefully considered.”

The underlying dispute involves a state law called the Crowley Act, which governs state takeovers. The law states that Providence must increase its appropriations to the school system by the same percentage as “total state school aid is increased.”

The RI Department of Education interpreted this to mean the total amount of state aid provided to all school districts, while the city argued it should be the increase in State aid to Providence schools. The judge sided with the state.

This is a developing story and will be updated.