NJ Advances Plan That Could Eliminate Many School Districts

Toms River NJ

09 March, 2021

1:15 PM

Description

NEW JERSEY — New Jersey lawmakers advanced a plan on Tuesday that could ultimately lead to the elimination of hundreds of New Jersey school districts. The Senate Education Committee unanimously approved legislation to help start the process of creating K-12 regional and countywide school districts in an effort to improve educational quality and efficiency (see the list of districts that could be eliminated under the plan below). The bipartisan bill, sponsored by Senate President Steve Sweeney and Sens. Vin Gopal and Declan O'Scanlon, would help create enhanced learning opportunities "that come from attending a K-12 or countywide district," said Sweeney. While the legislation would start the process, Sweeney said the goal is to ultimately eliminate nearly 300 school districts that are too costly to operate. "This will be the first major overhaul of New Jersey's school regionalization statute in over 25 years," said Sweeney. "It is designed to improve the quality of education by ensuring coordination of curriculum from K to 12, provide the enriched educational experience that smaller districts cannot offer, and generate long-term savings that can be used to hold down property taxes or reinvest in expanded educational programs." Regionalization is particularly important for small districts with declining enrollments that are having an increasingly hard time "providing a quality educational experience and making their budgets work," Sweeney said. Sweeney said one-school districts with fewer than 500 students spend 17 percent more per pupil than the 60 percent of New Jersey districts with 1,000 or more students, "and those include the large urban districts and comprehensive K-12 districts that are supposed to spend more under the state formula. Regionalization makes sense," he said. The legislation, S-3488, would do the following: Establish criteria for state-funded regionalization studiesIncrease flexibility on regionalization costBars any regionalization that would have a segregative effectProtect tenure and seniorityProvide significant financial incentives for districts losing state aid because of declining enrollment. The new legislation provides for an expedited preliminary approval process to enable districts that are losing state aid to readjust their 2021-2022 school budgets to factor in the increased funding they would receive for participating in regionalization studies. Many districts have been seeing an ongoing reduction in aid under S2, the law that enforced cuts in so-called adjustment aid to districts that have been deemed to not be paying their local fair share of property taxes. Read more: 2021 NJ School Aid: Who's Getting More; Who's Getting Less The legislation establishes an eight-year phaseout of adjustment aid cuts – stretched out from the current four years – for districts participating in a regionalization study. Salem County is currently exploring the possibility of creating New Jersey's first countywide school district with a state-funded Local Efficiency Achievement Program (LEAP) grant, and both Pinelands Regional in Ocean and Burlington counties and Roosevelt in Monmouth County are using LEAP grants for K-12 regionalization studies. O'Scanlon, R-Monmouth, said many of New Jersey's small districts are "inefficient and more costly for taxpayers, and all districts should explore the benefits available to their students and taxpayers alike." Gopal said the legislation removes significant barriers to regionalization, including a statutory provision to recalculate state aid that would have made it more costly for some districts to regionalize than to remain separate. "Importantly, it is a voluntary process that provides local districts with greater flexibility to design a regionalization phase-in that makes sense for all," said Gopal, D-Monmouth. It's not clear where Gov. Phil Murphy stands on this regionalization issue, and he has declined to comment on pending legislation. But two years ago, the governor did set aside $10 million for New Jersey communities to help promote shared services. About $2 million of that was earmarked to study K-12 consolidation, something that Sweeney has championed as part of his "Path to Progress" agenda. Sweeney has pushed 27 bills that he eventually hopes to put on the legislative agenda, lawmakers say, and they could come up for a vote soon. Sweeney's "Path to Progress" package was drawn up by himself and 26 analysts and so-called experts, and he told a panel at the Atlantic City Convention Center in 2018 that he wants action on the plan because "New Jersey faces a dangerous reality." "The goal is to eliminate the administration, put a principal in the school, get rid of the school district, leave a principal, let the regional high school become a K-12 district," Sweeney said. "You go from 600 districts to 320." Those recommendations included in the "Path to Progress" include: Merge all K-4, K-5, K-6, K-8, and K-9 school districts into K-12 regional districts to improve the quality of education and promote efficiency.Install high-occupancy toll lanes (or HOT lane) on I-80, I-295, I-287, among others.Allow the establishment of two countywide school district pilot programs.Explore the viability of transferring major assets such as the New Jersey Turnpike system to the state pension system to lower the unfunded liability and generate new revenue streams for the pension system.Create a Property Tax Assessment Study Commission to study the state's tax assessment practices and make recommendations for countywide or regional tax assessment to ensure consistency and efficiency. The effort started in early 2018. Then, the state Legislature created an Economic and Fiscal Policy Workgroup as a way to identify ways to address soaring pension and health benefits costs, hold down property taxes, make state and local government and school districts more efficient, assess the equity and efficiency of our state and local tax structure, leverage the value of state assets, and mitigate the negative impact of the federal tax law that targeted high cost states, Sweeney said. Sweeney said he has long fought for shared services as an effective means of making government more efficient and providing taxpayer savings. "K-12 regionalization, countywide school district pilots and shared services programs are a cornerstone of our Path to Progress plan to promote efficiency and lower property taxes," Sweeney has said. If the school districts were to be consolidated, here are the K-6 and K-8 that would be merged/eliminated: Absecon City, AtlanticBrigantine City, AtlanticEgg Harbor City, AtlanticEstell Manor City, AtlanticFolsom Boro, AtlanticGalloway Twp, AtlanticHamilton Twp, AtlanticLinwood City, AtlanticMargate City, AtlanticMullica Twp, AtlanticNorthfield City, AtlanticPort Republic City, AtlanticSomers Point City, AtlanticVentnor City, AtlanticWeymouth Twp, AtlanticAllendale Boro, BergenAlpine Boro, BergenCarlstadt Boro, BergenCloster Boro, BergenDemarest Boro, BergenEast Rutherford Boro, BergenEdgewater Boro, BergenEnglewood Cliffs Boro, BergenFairview Boro, BergenFranklin Lakes Boro, BergenHarrington Park Boro, BergenHaworth Boro, BergenHillsdale Boro, BergenHo Ho Kus Boro, BergenLittle Ferry Boro, BergenMaywood Boro, BergenMontvale Boro, BergenMoonachie Boro, BergenNorthvale Boro, BergenNorwood Boro, BergenOakland Boro, BergenOld Tappan Boro, BergenOradell Boro, BergenRiver Edge Boro, BergenRiver Vale Twp, BergenRochelle Park Twp, BergenSaddle River Boro, BergenSouth Hackensack Twp, BergenUpper Saddle River Boro, BergenWoodcliff Lake Boro, BergenWyckoff Twp, BergenBass River Twp, BurlingtonBeverly City, BurlingtonChesterfield Twp, BurlingtonDelanco Twp, BurlingtonEastampton Twp, BurlingtonEdgewater Park Twp, BurlingtonEvesham Twp, BurlingtonHainesport Twp, BurlingtonLumberton Twp, BurlingtonMansfield Twp, BurlingtonMedford Lakes Boro, BurlingtonMedford Twp, BurlingtonMount Holly Twp, BurlingtonMount Laurel Twp, BurlingtonNew Hanover Twp, BurlingtonNorth Hanover Twp, BurlingtonRiverton, BurlingtonShamong Twp, BurlingtonSouthampton Twp, BurlingtonSpringfield Twp, BurlingtonTabernacle Twp, BurlingtonWestampton, BurlingtonWoodland Twp, BurlingtonBarrington Boro, CamdenBellmawr Boro, CamdenBerlin Boro, CamdenBerlin Twp, CamdenBrooklawn Boro, CamdenClementon Boro, CamdenGibbsboro Boro, CamdenGloucester Twp, CamdenLaurel Springs Boro, CamdenLawnside Boro, CamdenMagnolia Boro, CamdenMerchantville Boro, CamdenMount Ephraim Boro, CamdenRunnemede Boro, CamdenSomerdale Boro, CamdenStratford Boro, CamdenOaklyn, CamdenVoorhees Twp, CamdenWaterford Twp, CamdenWoodlynne Boro, CamdenAvalon Boro, Cape MayCape May City, Cape MayDennis Twp, Cape MayLower Twp, Cape MayNorth Wildwood City, Cape MayStone Harbor Boro, Cape MayUpper Twp, Cape MayWest Cape May Boro, Cape MayWildwood Crest Boro, Cape MayWoodbine Boro, Cape MayCommercial Twp, CumberlandDeerfield Twp, CumberlandDowne Twp, CumberlandFairfield Twp, CumberlandGreenwich Twp, CumberlandHopewell Twp, CumberlandLawrence Twp, CumberlandMaurice River Twp, CumberlandStow Creek Twp, CumberlandUpper Deerfield Twp, CumberlandEssex Fells Boro, EssexFairfield Twp, EssexNorth Caldwell Boro, EssexRoseland Boro, EssexEast Greenwich Twp, GloucesterElk Twp, GloucesterFranklin Twp, GloucesterGreenwich Twp, GloucesterHarrison Twp, GloucesterLogan Twp, GloucesterMantua Twp, GloucesterNational Park Boro, GloucesterSouth Harrison Twp, GloucesterSwedesboro-Woolwich, GloucesterWenonah Boro, GloucesterWestville Boro, GloucesterWoodbury Heights Boro, GloucesterEast Newark Boro, HudsonGuttenberg Town, HudsonAlexandria Twp, HunterdonBethlehem Twp, HunterdonBloomsbury Boro, HunterdonCalifon Boro, HunterdonClinton Twp, HunterdonClinton-Glen Gardner, HunterdonDelaware Twp, HunterdonEast Amwell Twp, HunterdonFlemington-Raritan Reg, HunterdonFranklin Twp, HunterdonFrenchtown Boro, HunterdonHampton Boro, HunterdonHigh Bridge Boro, HunterdonHolland Twp, HunterdonKingwood Twp, HunterdonLebanon Boro, HunterdonLebanon Twp, HunterdonMilford Boro, HunterdonReadington Twp, HunterdonTewksbury Twp, HunterdonUnion Twp, HunterdonCranbury Twp, MiddlesexJamesburg Boro, MiddlesexMilltown Boro, MiddlesexAtlantic Highlands Boro, MonmouthAvon Boro, MonmouthBelmar Boro, MonmouthBradley Beach Boro, MonmouthBrielle Boro, MonmouthColts Neck Twp, MonmouthDeal Boro, MonmouthEatontown Boro, MonmouthFair Haven Boro, MonmouthFarmingdale Boro, MonmouthFreehold Boro, MonmouthFreehold Twp, MonmouthHighlands Boro, MonmouthHowell Twp, MonmouthLittle Silver Boro, MonmouthManalapan-Englishtown Reg, MonmouthMarlboro Twp, MonmouthMillstone Twp, MonmouthMonmouth Beach Boro, MonmouthNeptune City, MonmouthOceanport Boro, MonmouthRed Bank Boro, MonmouthRoosevelt Boro, MonmouthRumson Boro, MonmouthSea Girt Boro, MonmouthShrewsbury Boro, MonmouthSpring Lake Boro, MonmouthSpring Lake Heights Boro, MonmouthTinton Falls, MonmouthUnion Beach, MonmouthWest Long Branch Boro, MonmouthBoonton Twp, MorrisChester Twp, MorrisDenville Twp, MorrisEast Hanover Twp, MorrisFlorham Park Boro, MorrisHanover Twp, MorrisHarding Township, MorrisLincoln Park Boro, MorrisLong Hill Twp, MorrisMendham Boro, MorrisMendham Twp, MorrisMine Hill Twp, MorrisMorris Plains Boro, MorrisMount Arlington Boro, MorrisNetcong Boro, MorrisRiverdale Boro, MorrisRockaway Boro, MorrisRockaway Twp, MorrisWashington Twp, MorrisWharton Boro, MorrisBay Head Boro, OceanBeach Haven Boro, OceanBerkeley Twp, OceanEagleswood Twp, OceanIsland Heights Boro, OceanLakehurst Boro, OceanLavallette Boro, OceanLittle Egg Harbor Twp, OceanLong Beach Island, OceanOcean Gate Boro, OceanOcean Twp, OceanSeaside Heights Boro, OceanStafford Twp, OceanTuckerton Boro, OceanBloomingdale Boro, PassaicHaledon Boro, PassaicLittle Falls Twp, PassaicNorth Haledon Boro, PassaicProspect Park Boro, PassaicRingwood Boro, PassaicTotowa Boro, PassaicWanaque Boro, PassaicWoodland Park, PassaicAlloway Twp, SalemElsinboro Twp, SalemLower Alloways Creek, SalemMannington Twp, SalemOldmans Twp, SalemQuinton Twp, SalemUpper Pittsgrove Twp, SalemBedminster Twp, SomersetBranchburg Twp, SomersetGreen Brook Twp, SomersetSouth Bound Brook, SomersetWarren Twp, SomersetWatchung Boro, SomersetAndover Reg, SussexByram Twp, SussexFrankford Twp, SussexFranklin Boro, SussexFredon Twp, SussexGreen Twp, SussexHamburg Boro, SussexHampton Twp, SussexHardyston Twp, SussexLafayette Twp, SussexMontague Twp, SussexOgdensburg Boro, SussexSandyston-Walpack Twp, SussexStanhope Boro, SussexStillwater Twp, SussexSussex-Wantage Regional, SussexGarwood Boro, UnionMountainside Boro, UnionWinfield Twp, UnionAllamuchy Twp, WarrenAlpha Boro, WarrenBlairstown Twp, WarrenFranklin Twp, WarrenFrelinghuysen Twp, WarrenGreat Meadows Regional, WarrenGreenwich Twp, WarrenHarmony Twp, WarrenHope Twp, WarrenKnowlton Twp, WarrenLopatcong Twp, WarrenMansfield Twp, WarrenOxford Twp, WarrenPohatcong Twp, WarrenWashington Boro, WarrenWashington Twp, WarrenWhite Twp, Warren