Taxes up, programs cut in proposed Upper Township school budget

UPPER TOWNSHIP — The Board of Education on Monday introduced a $36.68 million operating budget that cuts programs and increases the tax rate, putting the blame on a big drop in state aid.

But school district officials see hope in a bill that could restore at least some of that state funding.

The district had braced for a loss of state funding, but officials were still surprised by the depth of the cut. Expecting a reduction of hundreds of thousands of dollars, the state instead reduced aid by $1.35 million, a cut of more than 20% compared to the year before.

The township had expected a reduction of about $700,000 in state aid compared to the year before.

School Business Administrator Laurie Ryan outlined the budget for the school board Monday. The expected state aid will drop from $6 million to $4.65 million, according to her budget presentation.

State law prevents school districts from increasing the tax levy by more than 2% over the previous year without taking the budget to a referendum. With costs rising and state aid dropping, Ryan told the board, that puts the district in a tough position.

This year, the proposed tax rate for the Upper Township school district is $1.45 for every $100 of assessed property value. For the owner of a house assessed at $350,000, that would mean a school tax bill of $5,075, in addition to township and county taxes. The increase would be $80.50 compared to last year.

That will mean a total tax levy of $27.55 million, the full 2% increase allowed. That’s $540,200 more than last year’s tax levy, and the district will still need cuts.

Planned reductions include one of the preschool sections, which will mean one less preschool teacher and one less aide, cutting costs on salaries and benefits.

The district will also cut a summer enrichment program and delay some improvements, including new computers and other technology.

“We have pretty much wiped out our technology budget this year,” Ryan said. “We’re going to hopefully buy some items at the end of this year, and that will carry us through to next year.”

Many of the district expenses are contractual, Ryan said. The district budget includes $19.2 million for salaries, and close to $5 million for benefits. Add in $9.8 million for tuition, mostly to Ocean City for township students in the high school and an additional $2.5 million for transportation, and that is close to the entire proposed budget.

“There really is not a whole heck of a lot of wiggle room,” Ryan said.

With limits on tax increases, the district would have to look at staff reductions and cutting programs. But if more state funding arrives, Ryan said, the district could return some of the cut items. A final vote is planned for April 24. Ryan hopes to have good news from Trenton, and a different bottom line, by that time.

When the state aid numbers were announced, Upper Township and other school districts lobbied for a return to previous funding levels. That appears to be likely to pay off, at least for this year, Ryan said.

According to the New Jersey School Boards Association, a bill offering more than $120 million in additional school funding appears to be heading for approval. The money would come from the state’s property tax relief fund and go to the Department of Education, making up for some of the lost funding, at least for a year.

Jonathan Pushman, director of governmental relations at the School Boards Association, said districts are still recovering from the impacts of COVID-19 and support mental health initiatives.

“These cuts would have been very painful and quite frankly impossible to absorb,” he said.

The bill has already been touted by Gov. Phil Murphy, so a signature appears likely if it is approved by the full Senate and Assembly as expected. It will allow districts to request additional aid of up to 66% of the difference between this year’s aid and last year’s.

Upper Township Board of Education members praised parents and community members who lobbied for relief. In Upper and other communities, people organized letter writing campaigns and contacted legislators asking for help.

At a recent Township Committee meeting, Committee member Victor Nappen praised those efforts and asked more people to get involved.

“There’s no way to cut any more without dismantling much-needed educational programs,” he said, adding the local district has already seen significant declines in annual state aid.

But the bill will only help this year, and only with funds lost because of an amendment to the state’s funding formula. More than 400 districts saw an increase in state aid under the new formula, but 157 will see reductions, including Upper Township.

The state spends more than $9 billion on aid to school districts, which includes more than $46 million in Cape May County last year, according to state records. That’s among the lowest in New Jersey, just a little over Hunterdon County’s $38 million for fiscal year 2023. The highest is Essex County, which received $1.6 billion, and several other counties received more than $800 million in state school aid.