This article from NPR explains the plight of public schools as the downturn in taxable income to states is causing state budget commitments to fail and public employees are an easy target. State revenues will likely suffer some time as businesses attempt to recover from the pandemic.
The article explains that the CARES Act proposed $270 in emergency aid per student, but the NPR article explains there is now controversy associated with the distribution of these funds across public and private institutions. The Heroes Act passed by the House provides additional funding for schools, but is given little change in the Republican-controlled Senate.
Funding cuts are particularly damaging to schools serving low income families. According to Robert Reich (The System), schools serving mostly poor and minority population receive 23 billion less funding than districts that serve mostly white and wealthy families. Federal funding is particularly important when the community and state cannot address such inequities.