The good news as it relates to school funding in New Jersey is that the Democrats are in control of the Legislature. Though their approaches differ, Gov. Phil Murphy and Senate President Stephen Sweeney both see the value of investing in public education.

We might add that this tradition – funding our schools – is one reason that, despite various issues, many people still move to the state, and remains one reason New Jersey still ranks among the top tiers of public education across this country. And the approach favored by both camps of Democrats stands in high contrast to the slash and burn thinking of Murphy’s predecessor, Chris Christie.

Which brings us back to the present, and the announcement late last week by Sweeney that he would be moving a proposal through the Legislature that would strip millions in state aid from some school districts and give the money to others. Sweeney has long complained that the current funding formula has become unfair to some districts while rewarding others, such as Jersey City, that really don’t need the extra money anymore.

Sweeney has vowed to shut down the government if he doesn’t get his way on adjusting the current formula. We hope the Senate president is amenable to compromise with Murphy on the issue, and that together they can come up with a funding plan that is suitable – and practical – for everyone. Indeed, in all the ways that matter, both men seem intent on upholding the basic tenets of the current law.

However, the truth is that the current formula has really never been fully implemented as it came into play late in the administration of Gov. Jon Corzine and was essentially ignored during the Christie years. Murphy’s view, of course, fits nicely into his greater spending strategy that includes a number of tax increases in a $37.4 billion budget.

We believe Murphy is right to try the simpler, though perhaps less practical approach. Many districts have been starved of funding for too long, and it is taking a toll. Besides, no one really knows how the current formula – the only one approved by the courts – would perform if it were ever fully funded.

“I’m on the side of all the folks who are mad as heck about their kid not getting the money they deserve, and we aim to fix that,” said Murphy, who also said that negotiations are ongoing so as to avoid a possible shutdown that would force the state to close state parks and stall some government services.

Sweeney’s plan would phase out over seven years a part of the current school funding law that he finds inequitable. By the end of the seven years, Sweeney said Thursday, the bill would transfer about $660 million in so-called “adjustment aid,” or “hold harmless aid” from overfunded to underfunded districts.

“That gives us the districts that have lost children the chance to shrink in attrition … and gives us a chance to end the unfairness that’s been going on.”

Meantime, some educators in North Jersey have been ecstatic about the possibility of more money for their districts. As The Record reported in March, every school district in Bergen, Passaic, Morris and Essex counties would get extra aid under the original Murphy plan, which boosts aid to schools by $283 million, up 3.5 percent from a year earlier.

We urge Sweeney and Murphy to sit down and find a way to reach consensus on school funding. This will require real negotiations, give and take. This issue, in particular, shouldn’t be put on the back shelf until the last week in June. The budget deadline is looming, and school districts are planning for the coming school year.

There is no time for grandstanding or posturing. There is only time for getting down to the hard craft of progress-making, hopefully in favor of fairly and responsibly funding all New Jersey schools.

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