Funding Alert

"It’s a coin flip," whether the next state budget will include a new school funding formula, says Governor Corzine. The rush to put a new formula in place has been slowed, in part because of concerns raised by the Our Children/Our Schools campaign and others over the NJ Department of Education’s flawed education cost study and the lack of time for careful legislative consideration and public review. Political differences over how to pay for a new school funding formula, while delivering significant property tax relief, are also a major hurdle. Adding to the uncertainty are the complexities of working out a formula that meets "educational and constitutional muster," the standard set by the Governor in his January 9th State of the State address.

The Governor is scheduled to present his FY08 proposed budget on February 27th. Between now and then, he will attempt to work out the elements of a new budget, including how to fund property tax relief, and whether to provide additional funding for school districts, many of which have endured flat state aid for years. It won’t be easy. A key issue will be whether the state will conduct a new, more credible "cost study" to serve as the basis of a new formula, or whether it will attempt to use the NJDOE’s recently released "Cost of Education" report, despite its many and widely criticized flaws.

Many advocates and some legislators are now calling for an increase in state school aid for all districts in the upcoming FY08 budget and a new effort over the next year to develop a funding formula that is fair, equitable and constitutionally adequate.

Even if the Governor’s February budget message does not include a proposal for a new funding formula, it is possible the Legislature will still consider proposals before the July 1st deadline for the next state budget. OC/OS will continue to actively monitor developments and advocate for increased state aid to school districts in 07-08, while a new study and a transparent process are put in place to develop a new formula for the following year, i.e., the 08-09 budget cycle. As OC/OS told legislators on lobby day: "It’s more important to do it right, than do it fast!"