Gov. Andrew Cuomo has called for a $1 billion increase in state aid to public schools while proposing a change to the formula used to distribute education aid statewide. The governor also said he wants to keep the millionaire’s tax, which was due to expire at the end of 2017.

The governor’s proposals were all made in a series of addresses and conversations with lawmakers in January as the process begins to craft a new state budget by April 1.

“The annual budget process has begun on a positive note, with Gov. Cuomo taking two critical steps in the right direction for our schools and students — a proposed increase in school aid and continuing the current millionaire’s tax,” said UFT President Michael Mulgrew. “We can support a change in the aid formula only if it ensures that high-needs districts like New York City receive the aid they are due.”

The Alliance for Quality Education calculates that Albany owes $4.3 billion to public schools statewide, while New York City schools alone are owed $1.9 billion under the landmark Campaign for Fiscal Equity court decision.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, a Bronx Democrat, earlier committed to a major increase in education aid. The speaker said he wants to create a timetable to “fully” phase in foundation aid, the current funding formula that most helps high-needs school districts such as New York City.

Taking a different tack, Cuomo proposes eliminating the phase-in of the decade-old school aid formula that would have eventually paid out the money owed under the CFE lawsuit. Instead, he proposed lowering the levels of poverty and updating Census data used to calculate aid for each school district, changes that he argues would drive more aid to high-needs districts. Also under his proposal, school districts would be guaranteed to receive the previous year’s aid. The new formula would only be used to calculate the distribution of any increase.

The millionaire’s tax, which was first put in place in 2009, collects a nearly 9 percent levy on household earned-income over $2 million, or for individual filers who make over $1 million. The nonprofit Fiscal Policy Institute estimates that the tax brings in about $3.7 billion a year.

The governor sought to put pressure on Senate Republicans, who oppose extending the millionaire’s tax, by saying in a Jan. 24 speech that there can be no increase in aid to public schools unless legislators vote to continue the income tax surcharge on millionaires.

The governor also called for eliminating the restriction on the number of charter schools that can open in New York City. His budget would allow charters that rent space in private buildings to bill the city for 30 percent of the school’s costs, up from 20 percent. The UFT will vigorously fight both proposals.

In the first of six regional State of the State addresses he made in early January, Cuomo also proposed a $35 million pilot program to create 22,000 new after-school slots in high-need areas across the state, including the Bronx. In the same speech, the governor reiterated his support for the state Dream Act that would enable undocumented students to gain access to financial aid for college.

In later regional State of the State addresses, Cuomo proposed allocating $2 million to cover the Advanced Placement exam fee for 68,000 low-income students and $5.3 million to expand Early College High Schools, which allow students to earn an associate’s degree in addition to a high school diploma.

The governor also proposed $150 million for new and existing community schools, a $50 million increase. Mulgrew said the UFT will be advocating for funds for existing community schools as well as supporting the governor’s plan to expand the model.

Cuomo’s primary education-related initiative this year will be to offer free tuition at a state or city university in New York — including two-year community colleges — for students whose families earn $125,000 or less. Cuomo unveiled that proposal on Jan. 3 alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders, who made free college tuition a signature issue in his campaign for the Democratic nomination for president.

Under the proposal, the state would ensure free tuition to students by supplementing existing state and federal grant programs — essentially making up the gap.

Speaking of the $30,000 or more in debt that many college students in New York accumulate by the time they graduate, Cuomo said, “It’s like starting a race with an anchor tied to your leg.”