school districts in Westchester and Nassau, the two counties that border New York City and thus most resemble the City in the concentration of students who are not English proficient and in the higher regional costs, particularly in hiring and retaining capable teachers. Accordingly, the 50% cost filter was properly rejected by the referees. Defendants nevertheless defend the use of the 50% filter on the ground that the State Board of Regents also used it in its own budget proposal, submitted to the referees. But if deference to the Regents is called for with respect to the cost filter, surely it must also be shown with respect to the appropriate poverty weighting. The Regents, as noted, recommended a weighting for New York City low-income students of 1.8. Application of a 1.8 low-income weightingeven with the 50% cost filterwould result in a resource gap of $5.25 billion, almost identical to the $5.26 billion gap found by the referees.[FN6]{**8 NY3d at 42} Notably, the Governor proposed additional annual New York City spending of $4.7 billion; the Regents proposed $4.7 billion from the State, plus $0.9 billion from the City, for a total of $5.6 billion; and New York City proposed $5.3 billion. Plainly, every governmental actor knew what the referees and the Appellate Division here concluded: A sound basic education will cost approximately $5 billion in additional annual expenditures. I remain hopeful that, despite the Court's ruling today, the policymakers will continue to strive to make the schools not merely adequate, but excellent, and to implement a statewide solution. Judges Rosenblatt, Read and Smith concur with Judge Pigott; Judge Rosenblatt concurs in a separate opinion; Chief Judge Kaye concurs in part and dissents in part in another opinion in which Judge Ciparick concurs; Judge Graffeo taking no part. [*19]Order modified, etc. Footnotes Footnote 1: In a companion case, City of New York v State of New York (86 NY2d 286 [1995]), we affirmed the Appellate Division's dismissal of an action by the City of New York, the New York City Board of Education, the Mayor of New York City, and the Chancellor of the New York City School District, and held that these municipal plaintiffs lacked capacity to bring an action against the State. Footnote 2: S & P added a fourth approach, which identified 102 of the State's highestperforming school districts, measured on the basis of 15 indicators, including passing rates on state tests, graduation rates and high school enrollment retention rates. Footnote 3: Based on these S & P estimates and after reviewing the results of plaintiff CFE's New York Adequacy Study and the Board of Regents Proposal on State Aid to School Districts, the Zarb Commission recommended a five-year phase-in of a statewide amount of $2.5 billion to $5.6 billion from state, local and federal sources.