Here’s how some North Jersey school districts are using extra state aid to give tax breaks

After years of mostly stagnant state funding, a majority of New Jersey school districts received unexpected increases under Gov. Phil Murphy’s inaugural budget. How will these extra funds be used by the districts?

The state will dole out $8.5 billion of its $37.4 billion budget in direct aid to fund education. The aid, which is the largest single line item in the budget, represents an increase of $351 million over the previous aid to school districts.

The shift is a revamping of the School Funding Reform Act and meant to redistribute aid from districts with shrinking enrollment or growing tax bases to those with booming populations and a large number of high-need students.

In total, 391 districts will get more aid, 14 will see no change and 172 will see a reduction — a trend that could continue in future years. That could mean relief for some taxpayers and an added burden for others.

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New Jersey’s property taxes are among the highest in the nation, averaging $8,690 last year, and the portion that goes to pay for local schools is typically the largest part of the tab.

In northern New Jersey, school districts that benefited most from the bump in funding were not hard-pressed to find use for the money, allocating funds toward property tax relief for residents, school building upgrades, educational programming, staff hires and student safety.

The extra dollars could help some districts begin to dig their way out of a hole that school leaders say was created by rising costs and exacerbated by years of flat funding and a 2 percent cap on property tax increases under the Chris Christie administration.

In New Jersey, where property taxes are among the highest in the nation and school budgets generally account for the largest chunk of tax dollars, taxpayers welcomed the news.

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Where will funding go? 

River Edge, which received the largest funding increase in Bergen County at a 157 percent increase, will reduce a planned tax bump by nearly half from $163 to $88.72.

The district will also use some of its $1,935,956 in funding to hire additional staff to help manage climbing enrollment, while increasing programming. Part-time physical education and Spanish teachers will be hired. As a result, Spanish instruction will begin in kindergarten as opposed to second grade.

Additional aid may also go toward security upgrades, a better communication system, technology upgrades and the capital budget. 

River Edge Superintendent Tova Ben Dov said the bill gives him comfort and “has a feeling of sustainment and permanence.”

In Fair Lawn, where funding increased 60.2 percent from $3.96 million to $6.35 million, taxpayers will also see some relief. The district will apply $1.2 million toward tax relief, saving about $4 for the owner of a home with the average assessed value of $328,749.

About $300,000 will pay for additional personnel to address class sizes. In March, Fair Lawn voters approved a $25 million proposal to fund an expansion project to address the growing student population. Enrollment grew from 4,653 to 5,025 and is projected to continue to grow.

The district will also use some of the funds to improve safety following the Paramus school bus crash in May in Mount Olive where one fifth-grade student and a teacher from East Brook Middle School died. Fair Lawn will allocate $105,000 to lease/purchase two school buses with three-point seat belts, GPS and cameras. Three existing buses will also get GPS and cameras and be outfitted with the three-point belts.  

Little Ferry lists tax relief and capital projects as top priorities for the additional $4.3 million it received. More than double what had originally been expected, this new total provides the district with the opportunity to give back one percent of the tax levy to the district. 

Additional funds will also pay for new boilers in Memorial School, a new air conditioning system in the gym and various other capital projects, interim Business Administrator Dennis Frohnapel said.

Nearby Ridgefield Park, where funding jumped 58 percent from $5.96 million to $9.41 million, designated $2 million for the 2019-2020 school year budget, said interim Superintendent Mark Hayes. The remainder of the aid will be used for maintenance projects and security equipment in the district.

In Lodi, trustee Ryan Curioni was adamant about using the entire additional sum to provide tax relief, but was outnumbered. The majority of the board approved the use of $570,000 of the fund to pay off the district’s debt for construction of the high school athletic fields, which Trustee Leslie Vizcaino called the “fiscally responsible” decision.

The remaining $1.2 million of additional state aid received will be used to reduce the general fund tax levy. That translates to a savings of approximately $48 per average school bill in a year compared to last year, said Business Administrator Marc Capizzi.

Ridgewood taxpayers will also see a reduction of about $48 in their tax bill. The district anticipated $2.45 million in state aid, but received an additional $890,736 in funding. Most – $551,887 – will go toward a refund of the local tax levy.

The remaining money will be placed in capital reserve for projects in the upcoming 2019-2020 school year, district officials said.

Aid in Elmwood Park jumped nearly 80 percent, from $4.74 million to $8.48 million. The board will return $1 million to residents in the form of tax relief. Acting Superintendent Anthony Iachetti said district officials estimate residents with an average assessed home, valued at $329,000, will see an annual tax increase of around $25 instead of $120.

Another $1.2 million will go toward hiring additional personnel, such as general and special education teachers, guidance counselors and child study team members. Funds will also be allocated for tuition and other services for special education students, technology and supplies. 

In Passaic County, City of Passaic School District received between $9 and $10 million in additional school aid. It comes, school officials said, at an opportune time.

The district is switching to a K-8 program, from K-5 in most neighborhood schools. The district will also have two new academies: a college prep and STEM for students in grades 6 to 12.

The aid will be used to fund school security and hire 37 new security aides for its 18 schools. 

“The additional funding is supporting our district’s realignment so that we can provide Passaic students with more options and new learning experiences,” Schools Superintendent Pablo Muñoz said. “Between opening our new schools, providing new STEM and CTE courses, and increasing security services across the district, we are thankful for the investment the state is making in our schools.” 

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The big picture

Most of New Jersey’s 577 school districts will receive more state aid than they did last year under the budget Murphy signed July 1. About 30 percent saw a reduction that forced last-minute cuts.

In total, all counties except Cape May, Hunterdon, Ocean and Sussex will see a net increase in aid this year, according to the Department of Education figures.

In Passaic County West Milford suffered the largest loss with its aid cut by $415,000.  

“It’s definitely going to hurt the district,” West Milford school board member William Cytowicz said later in the day, referring to his district’s $415,000 reduction in aid. “But also, on our end, it’s a realization that our declining enrollment has been recognized by the state.”

Since 2007, enrollment in West Milford schools has dropped from nearly 4,500 to about 3,300 students. Cytowicz said the district was likely to cut either capital projects or staff. Either way, he said, the cuts will “hurt the kids.” 

In Bergen County, Leonia and Ridgefield saw a 1.2 percent cut in aid. Morris County saw cuts in Washington by about $260,000 and Randoph by $337,000. No Essex County school districts lost aid. 

Staff writers Matt Fagan, Meghan Grant, Stephanie Noda, Katie Sobko, Nicholas Pugliese and Dave Sheingold contributed to this article. 

Email: nolan@northjersey.com

 

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