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High Court Revives Suit Over How Public Schools Are Funded

Students at Alexander D. Goode School in York, Pa.

Pennsylvania's highest court is reviving a lawsuit that says the state is failing in its obligation to provide an adequate education to public school students.

The Supreme Court's 5-2 ruling Thursday reverses a decision by a lower court, which threw out the challenge to how schools are funded.

The decision now returns the case to Commonwealth Court, whose decision two years ago dismissing it had been unanimous.

The legislative and executive branch defendants have argued the lawsuit raises political questions that are not appropriate for the courts.

The plaintiffs include school districts, students, parents and others. If they're eventually successful, their case could dramatically reshape how schools are paid for and how they operate.

(Photo credit: Governor Tom Wolf/Flickr)

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