Which Central Jersey school districts got the biggest aid increases? Which lost the most?
Like every casino game, there are winners and losers in the annual round of state funding for public school districts.
This year, there are more winners than losers.
In Central Jersey, Middlesex, Somerset and Union counties all saw more than 10% increases in state aid, with Somerset County, one of the most affluent counties in New Jersey and the United States, seeing an 18.5% hike, the largest of any county in the state.
And three Middlesex County districts, including Edison, were in state's top 10 of districts with state aid percentage increases.
But Hunterdon County, another one of the richest counties in the state and country, saw the overall funding to its 26 school districts drop by 1.5%.
Only Hunterdon, Monmouth, Ocean and Cape May counties saw decreases in Gov. Phil Murphy's proposed budget that raised total state public school aid by $834 million, a rise of 8.4% to $10.7 billion. That's almost a fifth of the total proposed state budget of $53.1 billion.
The process of how the state determines how much state aid a school district will receive is elaborate and impenetrable, a calculation of factors that only a devout bureaucrat could love and understand. The state Department of Education has put its 257-page school budget manual online if you need answers to your budget questions.
What most New Jersey residents want to know is how the state aid numbers will affect their property tax bills. School taxes make up the bulk of property tax bills, perhaps one of the biggest expenses homeowners must pay every year. New Jersey has some of the highest property tax bills in the country, but the state also has some of the highest property values and incomes in the United States.
Look up your district:NJ has released 2024 school funding figures. See how much will go to your district
In the next few weeks, local school boards will be releasing tentative budgets for the 2023-24 school year that starts on July 1 when the state's new fiscal year begins (if the Legislature meets the July 1 deadline for passing a budget).
When the school budgets are introduced, that's when residents will find out the potential impact of school budgets on their property tax bills. And unlike in past decades, voters will not have an opportunity to decide the fate of school budgets unless than the proposals exceed the state-mandated cap.
But keep in mind that the state has built in a 5.86% inflation rate into budget and aid calculations. And remember that property tax values have also increased."It is difficult to assess the relative impact on districts when calculating the percentage change just in terms of state aid," said school funding expert Danielle Farrie of the Education Law Center, an advocate for fair funding. "A large percentage loss of state aid in a district that is funded primarily through local funding is very different from a large percentage loss in a district that is predominantly funded through state aid. It is more instructive to look at the changes relative to each district’s operating budget."
Districts that are unable to raise the revenue they need from local property taxes – while continuing to deal with drops in state aid – feel the burden the most. Declines in state aid are usually linked to falling enrollment.
The state needs to pay attention to those districts because they will be spending below what is considered an adequate rate per student and would likely face painful cuts to "classroom staff, social-emotional supports and other essential programs," Farrie said.
"The aid numbers may have been more unpredictable this year due to the impact of inflation and property values on how aid is calculated," Farrie said. "Some districts may have received more than they were expecting, and others much less. We are concerned about some districts’ ability to absorb these cuts, especially those spending below the formula’s adequacy target."
Middlesex County
The biggest jackpot winner in Middlesex County is South Plainfield. State aid to the borough is increasing by 65.2%, a rise of $6.5 million.
It's the second largest increase in the state, behind only Woodland Park in Passaic County.
Neighboring Edison is also sharing in the jackpot with a 54.4% increase, a $25.9 million rise. It's fourth in the state.
The other big winners in Middlesex County are Milltown, up 37.1%; Highland Park, up 34.2% and South River, up 30.4%
The biggest loser in the county is South Brunswick with a decrease of 20.6%, a loss of $4 million. The only other districts in Middlesex County losing aid are Old Bridge, a 7% decrease of $2 million, and Piscataway, a 2.4% decrease of $530,419.
Overall aid for Middlesex County school districts increased by 14.3%, the third highest increase among New Jersey's counties.
Somerset County
In Somerset County, the total aid amount increased by 18.53%, $33.3 million. All but one school district received an increase in state aid.
The sole exception was Hillsborough, which received a 4.2% decline, $913,000. The school board is expected to introduce the budget on Monday night.
The cut is the latest in a series of aid decreases to the district as the state rejiggered its formula to give traditionally underfunded districts, small urban districts like Manville and Bound Brook, more money.
Bound Brook is seeing a 21.1% increase and Manville will get 24.6% more.
The big winners in Somerset County are Warren with a 39.3% increase, $853,116, and Franklin, 37.7%, $5.8 million. Warren has the seventh largest percentage increase in the state while Franklin ranks eighth.
Hunterdon County
In total, the county's 26 school districts received 1.5% less in school aid, a $573,623 decrease.
A majority of the school districts are seeing decreases, with small towns like High Bridge and Milford suffering the largest percentage cuts. Both districts are seeing cuts of nearly a third, about 31%. Delaware Valley Regional is losing 22.8%
That's unacceptable, according to state Sen. Doug Steinhart, R-Warren.
“It’s unconscionable that the Murphy administration is slashing aid to school districts like Delaware Valley Regional and High Bridge while the governor is sitting on an obscene $10 billion surplus built with taxpayer funds,” Steinhardt said. “There’s absolutely no reason that schools in Hunterdon County or anywhere else should have their funding cut when the state is so flush with cash."
There were some winners in Hunterdon County. Clinton Township will get 14.6% more, $289.976; Franklin up 21.9%, 498,883; Hampton up 25.2%, $187,562; Readington up 12.6%, $269,101, and Tewksbury up 15%, $181,848.
But other districts losing state aid were Alexandria, Bethlehem, Califon, Clinton Town, Flemington-Raritan, Holland, Hunterdon Central, Kingwood, Lebanon Township and North Hunterdon.
Union County
Union County was one of the state's biggest winners with an overall increase of 12.3%, $117.9 million.
Only tiny Winfield, with its population of 1,509, will see a decrease, 1.4%, $24,381. The district's only school had 155 students as of October.
All other Union County school districts saw increases, from 1.3% in Kenilworth to 21.5% in Springfield. Plainfield will get 15.8% more, $33.6 million; Scotch Plains-Fanwood will receive 18.2% more, $1.1 million; Berkeley Heights up 15.9%, $414,531; and New Providence up 15.6%, $391,383.
Westfield will be receiving 14.7% more, $965,482. But the district will still be going to town voters on April 25 for approval of a budget that would exceed the state's 2% tax levy cap.
If the two questions on the ballot are approved, the total proposed tax increase for the average Westfield homeowner to support the 2023-2024 school district operating budget would be 4.8% or $444 annually ($37 per month).
If voters reject the budget, then the spending plan goes to the Town Council.
Contributing: NorthJersey.com staff writer Mary Ann KoruthEmail: mdeak@mycentraljersey.com
Mike Deak is a reporter for mycentraljersey.com. To get unlimited access to his articles on Somerset and Hunterdon counties, please subscribe or activate your digital account.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Which Central NJ school districts saw the biggest state aid jumps?
