NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A judge has declined an effort by the state to throw out a lawsuit challenging the adequacy of Tennessee's school funding formula.

The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports (http://bit.ly/1Ok94Fb ) that Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman told attorneys in Nashville on Friday that the case will proceed, but she also declined class-action status to the case that would have allowed it to include all 141 school systems in the state.

School districts in seven counties are suing the state on claims they are not receiving enough money through the state funding formula to educate their students. If they win their case, the solution could cost the state more than $500 million a year.

The Chattanooga-area districts involved in the lawsuit are in Bradley, Coffee, Grundy, Hamilton, Marion, McMinn and Polk counties.