HARRISBURG (AP) A Pennsylvania court says a legal challenge to the state's system of funding public schools involves political questions that don't belong in the courts.

Commonwealth Court on Tuesday threw out a lawsuit filed by individuals and poorer school districts that included Panther Valley, arguing the state has imposed graduation exams without providing the money it would take to ensure enough students pass them.The opinion by Judge Dan Pellegrini says it's up to the Legislature to determine how much money each district needs to meet the test standards."I'm disappointed, but not surprised," Panther Valley School District Superintendent Dennis Kergick said of the ruling early Wednesday."I think that in some cases people in the Legislature don't make the jump in regard to meeting the demands that are required of education in today's society. This is a political hot potato," he said.But school districts aren't giving up, Kergick said."An appeal is in the works. This is not over. It's going to be resubmitted for review. School districts in this lawsuit are in it for the long haul," he said.The ruling is a victory for Republican leaders in the House and Senate, who had argued the complaints involved political issues.State support for public education is a perennial debate in Harrisburg. This year Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf is proposing a significant increase in funding.Commonwealth Court got the case on March 11.Panther Valley was among the six school districts included in the suit, along with seven parents, the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools and the NAACP.The Philadelphia-based Education Law Center filed the suit on their behalf against the governor and the presiding officers of the state House and Senate and the state Department of Education.The lawsuit says the state has established strict academic standards but failed to provide equal resources for students who must meet them.The suit argued that per-pupil spending ranges from less than $10,000 in districts with low property values and incomes to more than $28,000 in those with higher property values and incomes."Funding is dictated by ZIP code. We have just as many bright kids as any other school district in the Commonwealth, and they are not given a fair shake," Kergick said."A lot of people think we are doing this for a quick fix. But the sustainability is a big factor, that's obviously a key issue," he said.The lawsuit asked the court to declare that the current funding formula violates the constitution and order state officials to devise a funding system that passes constitutional muster.Chris Parker contributed to this report.