Property Tax Reform, Special Legislative Session & School Funding

11-1-06 Parent Press Conference packet
Attached is material and remarks made by press conference participants, parents Sarah Maris (Fair Haven), Jonathan Marshall (Bernards Twp), Michele Lenhard (Ridgewood), and Betsy Ginsburg (Glen Ridge), and GSCS Exec. Director Lynne Strickland. Thanks to the large number of parents who took the time to show up in Trenton today to make a visual statement of your concern for your schools, communities and quality education. Watch NJN tonight - you will see GSCS in action.

Material is copied here in same order as presented at the Press Conference:

 

Welcome....Dr.Marjorie Heller, President GSCS

 

Moderator & Opening FYI....Lynne Strickland,

                                               GSCS Executive Director

 

Garden State Coalition of Schools Parent Press Conference in Trenton 11-1-06

Context of school funding in the suburbs: Unpredictable, unstable, and becoming untenable due to increasing reliance on local taxpayers to pick up the difference. Approximately 45% of the Regular Operating Districts in the state are considered ‘too wealthy’ now by the state’s own ability-to-pay formula to receive basic state aid.

 

• 5 years of flat formula funding
• School Construction – into second year with no substantial notification to districts re: if or when  or even they may receive stated ‘state share’ of eligible costs.
• Myth of IJ per pupil average being the cost driver of Abbott spending

While this was true up to about 2000, things have changed. In 2000 supplemental aid, as mandated in Supreme Court decisions, kicked in.

 

In recent years, the pupil spending for education in Abbotts has increased to approximately $3K more that the IJ average. The link between the end-cost of Abbott and IJ budgeting for regular education is no longer the engine for overall Abbott costs. Policy-makers need to understand that change so that policy decisions they make now re: school funding are based on current fact, not past history.

 

Data Handout - Impact for all districts if Special Education aid is equalized:

 

Loss of Aid, via equalization by implementing wealth-based formula for special education, appears to be under consideration in new funding formula:

Consequences are real - In the name of property tax relief, districts will be pushed to raise property taxes to meet reduced aid to the possible tune of $635M.

 

• Handout: Special Education Aid Statewide Listing (Spec. Ed. Aid is based on individual student need no matter where he or she lives)

 

(Listing does not include ‘extraordinary’ special education aid, in FY07 = $52 although laws called for $174M).

  

 

Addenda: Examples of State Special Education Aid & Costs  in local districts

Ridgewood  (FY07)

 

NJ State Aid for Special Education $2,551,192     (28.7% of Special Ed costs excluding Federal dollars)

Instruction    $3,417,010

Child Study Teams   2,368,420

Tuition   1,559,900

Transportation   1,515,200

Total $ 8,860,530

Federal $ - Out of District Placement $800,000

Grand Total costs - $9,660,530

 

Special Ed cost  as a percent of total budget - 12.7% 

Federal & State Aid Total - $3,351,192 ( 34.6% of Special Ed Costs)

Benefits for special education staffing are approximately $500K+

 

Fair Haven (FY06)

State Special Education aid = $514,709.00

State transportation aid = $32,936.00

Federal aid for 0506 =  $180,370.00

 

• Special Education spending  2005-2006 =  approximately $1,780,192.00 (including Child Study Teams, classroom instruction, supplies, out of district tuition, related services etc (not including transportation).
• Special Education Transportation costs = $125,952.00. 

Total spending for Special Education = $1,906,144.00 . 

Total State and Federal aide = $728,015.00  (therefore funded at about 38% costs;  

                                                                        only State aide,  29%).

 

Fair Haven only has one student placed out of district, remarkable for a district its size.

 

                                                            Glen Ridge (FY07)

General Fund:   Cost
4
5	Tuition (out-of-district placement)	$545,733
6	Speech	122,103
7	Professional Service (OT, PT, ABA, Evals, etc)	284.564
8	CST	704,160
9	Aides 11-190-100-106-01-00-00	57,074
10	Special Ed Instruction	1,076,875
11
12	Sub-Total	$2,790,509
13
14	Transportation:
15	In-District	59,094
16	Out-of-District	305,542
17
18	Sub-Total	$3,096,051
19
20	Benefits:
21	Wages                 FICA Rate
22	FICA                    $332,291      x         .0765	$25,420
23	Wages                  Est. Rate
24	PERS                  $80,707        x          .03	8,421
25	Salaries           Est. Ben. Alloc.
26	Health Benefits  $1,959,566      x          16%	313,530
27
28	Total General Fund	$3,443,422
29
30	Special Revenue Fund:   Cost
31
32	IDEA (Basic & Pre-School)
33	Purchase Professional Services	$13,380
34	Out-of-District Tuition	254,090
35	Supplies	14,000
36	Professional Development	5,000
37	Wages	7,500
38	Fringe Benefits	1,125
39
40	Total Special Rev. Fund	$295,095
41
42	Grand Total General & Special Revenue Funds-Cost	$3,738,517
43
44
45	General Fund: Revenues
46
47	Special Education Aid - State Aid	$689,116
48	Transportation Aid-State Aid	118,486
49	**Extra-Ordinary Aid	66,950
50
51	Sub-Total	$874,552
52
53	Special Revenue Fund: Revenues
54
55	IDEA (Basic & Pre-School)	$295,095
56
57	Grand Total General and Special Revenue Funds-Revenues	$1,169,647
58
59	Total State Aid & Federal Grant Revenues as a % of Total Annual Cost
60	$1,169,647 ÷ $3,738,517	31.3% Combined
61
62	State Aid Revenues as a % of General Fund Annual Cost
63	$874,552 ÷ $3,443,422	25.4% State Only

 

__________________________________________________

PARENT SPEAKERS:

 

1)      Garden State Coalition of Schools  Press Conference November 1, 2006

     

                                                Sarah Maris

                                        Fair Haven, New Jersey

 

In Fair Haven, we are passionate about our public schools.  We are a strong community made up of relative newcomers and families who have lived in our town for generations.  We don’t agree on everything – but we do agree on some fundamentals. 

 

First, in Fair Haven, as in many New Jersey communities, our property taxes are uncomfortably high.  Everyone from working families to retirees are feeling the pinch.  Too many people are wondering – can I really afford to live here anymore? 

 

Our second point of agreement is that we really want to live here because of the quality of our schools and our community.  Our schools and our children are a vital part of our town.  We recognize that if New Jersey is to continue to prosper, we need an educated workforce.  In Fair Haven, as in many New Jersey towns, our community works together to give our children the skills they will need for the 21^st century.

 

Our third point of agreement is that we’re worried.  We know that Trenton has heard our concerns about taxes and we applaud their efforts to fix this problem.  But we’re worried that our Legislators haven’t heard our second message – that we value the quality of our public schools.  We are not willing to sacrifice the future of our children and our community and our state in the name of property tax relief.

 

I ask our legislators to look at what happened in California after the passage of Proposition 13.  In the name of tax reform, California starved its schools of cash.  The result?  California went from having one of the best public school systems in the country to having one of the worst. 

 

Talk to your friends and relatives in California and ask them about the quality of their public schools.  You will learn that in California, anyone who can afford to, sends their children to private schools.  Those children whose parents can’t afford private schools end up in overcrowded classrooms with outdated books and meager supplies.

 

Is that what we want for New Jersey?

 

Yes, we do need to address our high property taxes but we can’t do it by mortgaging our children’s future. 

 

And we can’t do it by giving up local control over our schools.  Community control is one of the major strengths of the New Jersey public school system. 

 

The citizens of Fair Haven keep a close eye on our schools.  We have spirited discussions about curriculum and budgets both in and out of our Board of Education meetings.  Our administrators and Board of Ed. members know that if they do something that our community doesn’t like, they are going to hear about it. 

 

Are there savings to be had through shared services?  Absolutely!  But we don’t need to take control away from our local communities to make that happen.  The best decisions about our schools will be made by our neighbors, who understand our community and want to do what is right by both our children and by our taxpayers.  

 

We need to make some compromises to solve our tax crisis.  But let’s make sure they are well-considered compromises.  We cannot afford to let New Jersey public schools follow California’s path to mediocrity and eventual failure.

 

Please Trenton, as you consider school funding legislation ask yourselves – how will this affect future generations of New Jerseyans?  Preserve high quality public education in New Jersey and leave us with a New Jersey that our children and grandchildren can be proud of.

 

 

2) Garden State Coalition of Schools press conference statement, November 1, 2006

 

Jonathan A. Marshall, Bernards Township

 

I want to thank our legislators for working hard on the issues of school funding and property tax reform.

 

Please remember that the debate is not just property taxes.  It's about New Jersey's future.  Providing opportunity and community for New Jerseyans to live full, productive lives here.  Making our state a desirable place to live so that companies and workers want to be here.  Educating children so they can bring good jobs here.

 

The debate is both dollars and educational effectiveness.  How can we make all of New Jersey’s schools effective, for the benefit of all of New Jersey’s children, while keeping costs as efficient as possible?

 

I live in Bernards Township, and my children attend our public schools.  The Bernards Township Schools are known for Value: good education and low costs.  They have done that by years of penny pinching:

·    switching from the costly State Health Benefits Plan to private health insurance – saving $2 million/year;

·    privatizing custodial services – saving hundreds of thousands of dollars per year;

·    establishing special ed programs in-house, to keep tuition and transportation dollars;

·    reducing the number of administrators and administrative staff;

·    increasing class sizes;

·    avoiding amenities – no swimming pool, no middle school sports funding, etc.

 

Like many New Jersey school districts, Bernards Township is doing things right.  There is no single formula for success, but every district deserves the flexibility to find its own ways of saving money while striving for educational effectiveness.

 

One thing that has really hurt the Bernards Township schools is the state aid which has stayed flat for six years, while enrollment has increased 20%.  The flat state aid has fallen from 7.4% to 5.1% of our school budget.  The cumulative shortfall is about $4.7 million, which has caused our property taxes to rise by about $430 per home.

 

This same problem has hurt many of the Garden State Coalition school districts.

 

New Jersey does many things right.  We have many excellent schools.  All of New Jersey's state and local taxes add up to a tax rate of 8.6%, surprisingly close to the national average of 8.4%.  New Jersey has low unemployment, and good economic potential and opportunity for the future.

 

In all this discussion, please remember that our parents and communities provided for us.  They paid for our schooling.  They provided a vision for what our State would be like.  Let us not sacrifice what New Jersey does right.

 

Legislators, focus on educational effectiveness with saving dollars.  Please take concrete steps to help and encourage our school districts to achieve high quality education for all New Jersey's children, at low cost.  Not just tax cutting by itself.

 

    3) Michele Lenhard, Ridgewood

 

Hello, my name is Michele Lenhard.  I have two children in the Ridgewood Public Schools.  Like many people here today I started volunteering in the schools many years ago.  Stocking library shelves, reading in the classroom, organizing lunchtime activities began a long list of activities which supported our schools. Financial support followed right behind, as I became part of parent groups identifying the growing needs not met by the school budget.  Purchases such as plastic bags, batteries, film, and sticky tack were commonplace, as were large projects which enhanced the facility and learning environments such as playgrounds, library furniture and sound equipment. Oh, and of course books we bought our fair share of them too! 

 

Over the years much has changed in the classroom as we seek to include all types of learners and have them reach ever increasing standards of education. These are wonderful ideals which I strongly support.  I am sure you will all agree with me that we need to provide a quality education for all the children in our State. I also believe you will agree with me that we are all willing to pay our fair share of those cost!

 

 In Ridgewood 94% of our school budget is supported locally. Is that fair? Adequate State funding of education should apply to all students.

 

Our district has exhibited financial responsibility and creativity over the years with cost saving measures which include:

            Privatization of custodial and food services

            Participation with other school districts to purchase natural gas

            Local agreements with the Village of Ridgewood to provide for grounds maintenance, snow removal and vehicle fuel.

            A Joint contract with Region 1 school members to provide transportation for out of district Sp. Ed students, non-public school students and athletics.

            Participation in a joint venture with Paramus School District to provide a special education program focused on autistic children.

 

While we strive to contain costs delivering quality education is our driving force. The lower CAP and spending controls adopted by the State, as well as flat State funding have made these goals even harder to achieve.  The most significant cost drivers in our budget; energy, special education and salaries and health benefits all exceed the CAP. In order to meet the State funding guidelines each year budget cuts must be made.

 

Financial support from the State towards funding special education costs is essential. All students with special needs and disabilities should receive State supported aid no matter where they live.

 

The decisions necessary to balance our budget each year while keeping the tax rate affordable to all Village residents have become more complicated.  Successfully passing our budgets has become more difficult.  Ridgewood has experienced failed budget referendums and 2^nd questions.  Support for the school system is eroding and splintering community members. 

 

A school funding formula should fairly recognize a towns ability to support it’s local school system, regionally adjust costs, and will protect the quality educational standards we have come to expect in New Jersey.  We have already shown our commitment to the public schools of New Jersey, now we ask our elected leaders to do the same.

 

________________________________________________________________________

4) GARDEN STATE COALITION OF SCHOOLS PARENT PRESS CONFERENCE

November 1, 2006

 

REMARKS: Betsy Ginsburg, Glen Ridge

 

            My name is Betsy Ginsburg, and I am a parent from Glen Ridge in Essex County.  I am here today to remind our legislators that parents, children and educators in districts like mine are depending on them to create a new school funding formula that meets the needs of all students—no matter where they live.

            Twenty years ago State education aid accounted for 23%of our school budget; now we receive only 4.3%.  This is the single biggest reason for our skyrocketing property tax bills, which now average over $15,000 per year.

            The majority of Glen Ridgers are not rich and many make considerable sacrifices to remain in our town and send their children to our excellent public schools.  But for some, the sacrifice is just too much.  Longtime residents have been forced to leave and young families are finding it harder to afford the high tax bills that come with even the most modest homes.  Our community is suffering and so are the over 200 other communities whose school districts are considered too wealthy for basic education aid.

            Glen Ridge students did not create the property tax crisis.  Neither did our teachers, local superintendent or Board of Education.  For years the legislature has ignored the pleas of high achieving, cost effective districts like Glen Ridge, and failed to address the inequities caused by the current school funding formulas.  Now legislators are under pressure to solve long-festering problems in a very short time.  I worry that instead of creating a workable funding formula they will rely on dangerous half measures like equalization of Special Education Aid.

            “Equalization” is really a misnomer, as it makes some of our most vulnerable students more “equal” than others.  It works like this—under equalization, the State will withhold all Special Education Aid to students in districts like mine in order to provide a little more aid to students in other districts.  I can’t think of anything more harmful, divisive and destructive.  Special Education services are mandated by the State and Federal governments, so equalization will mean that Glen Ridge and many other cash-strapped school districts will have to cut programs and personnel in order to continue providing Special Education programs.  Property taxes will rise while educational quality and property values will plummet.  In communities that have been systematically starved of State Aid for years, equalization will be a recipe for disaster.

            Are there workable solutions to the property tax crisis?  The Garden State Coalition has suggested a funding formula whereby no school district will receive more than 85% or less than 15% of its budget from the State.  A formula like this would have an immediate positive effect on districts like mine, and property taxes would go down as the result.

            Glen Ridge and many other districts are already saving money by opting out of the State Health Benefits Plan and providing employees with one-time payments in lieu of dual spouse health coverage.  Districts use cooperative buying plans for everything from energy to basic supplies, or save money and manpower by sharing services with their municipalities.  The Legislature can facilitate even more savings by providing incentives for shared services and eliminating legal barriers to voluntary consolidations.  These measures will help districts maintain the educational quality we all prize while reducing the property taxes we all hate.

            A solution that ignores children in the many districts like mine is no solution at all.  Punitive measures like unrealistic spending caps and forced consolidations will only drive property taxes up and hurt our children.  We have waited years for real equity in education funding and we will not accept anything less.