METROPOLITAN DESK

New York Court Cuts Aid Sought for City Schools

By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN; DIANE CARDWELL AND DANNY HAKIM CONTRIBUTED REPORTING.

New York State's highest court ended a landmark legal fight over education financing yesterday, ruling that at least $1.93 billion more must be spent each year on New York City's public schools — far less than the $4.7 billion that a lower court called the minimum needed to give city children the chance for a sound basic education.

In its 4-2 ruling, the Court of Appeals noted that in 2004 a commission appointed by Gov. George E. Pataki contemplated a range of spending options for the state to fulfill its constitutional obligation to the city's nearly 1.1 million schoolchildren, with $1.93 billion at the low end of the scale. The court endorsed the $1.93 billion as ''reasonable.''