PHILADELPHIA — An education funding formula could help remedy wide spending disparities among school districts in Pennsylvania and would likely mean more state aid for perpetually cash-strapped Philadelphia, according to a new study.

A formula that takes into account districts’ wealth and its students’ needs “probably would reduce the substantial variations in overall education revenue among urban, rural, and suburban districts in the state,” said the report by the Pew Charitable Trusts. Education advocates have been pushing lawmakers to devise what they view as a more equitable way to distribute state aid. A funding formula commission is expected to issue a report by June.

Pennsylvania, Delaware and North Carolina are the only states without funding formulas, according to the Education Law Center.

The Pew researchers cautioned that a formula, by itself, does not guarantee an infusion of state aid.

But they added that “regardless of the level of overall funding from Pennsylvania, a new formula would almost certainly provide Philadelphia with a larger share of state education money than it receives under the current system.”

Pew said a formula might also reduce state funding to wealthier suburban districts with smaller numbers of high-needs students, narrowing the wide spending disparity between those districts and poor ones.

The report examined 10 districts representing a variety of demographics: urban Philadelphia, Erie, Pittsburgh and Reading; rural Connellsville, Solanco and West Perry; and suburban Lower Merion, Council Rock and Radnor Township.

It also compared Philadelphia with 10 urban systems nationwide that use funding formulas. Researchers found seven of those districts spend more per-pupil than Philadelphia. Although the affluent districts of Council Rock and Radnor received less per student in state funding than the urban and rural districts, they still were able to spend significantly more in 2012-13 because they get most of their revenue from local property and income taxes.