Republicans pledge support for Christie’s school funding plan

Gov. Chris Christie came to Hillsborough High School Monday to announce a sweeping plan that would dramatically shift how local school districts receive education funding from the state.

Christie on Tuesday proposed a major overhaul of the state’s funding formula, which now gives districts extra money per pupil for students who historically need extra support, including students from low-income families and students who don’t speak English as their first language.

Gov. Chris Christie has established the Cabinet post of chief technology officer for New Jersey. He did so again Tuesday, saying “failure is still the rule, not the exception” in districts where the state has spent almost $100 billion the last 30 years in more than two dozen school districts where the graduate rates are well below the state average of 90 percent.

“Other than a couple SDA districts, towns in Bergen and Passaic counties have carried the brunt of increasing property taxes, yet they have received the least amount of funding in the entire state”, Schepisi said.

The governor said 58 percent of aid under the current formula goes to only 5 percent of the state’s school districts, yet their graduation rates and student performance are far below state averages.

Christie wants his plan, which would require a state constitutional amendment, to be presented to voters as a ballot question next fall, an election that will decide the next governor.

“After years of being the lone voice calling for a new school funding formula that treats every student and every taxpayer fairly, I’m glad that Governor Christie has joined my call for reform”, Doherty said.

Christie has for years strongly criticized that school-funding formula as unfair and fiscally irresponsible by pouring billions of tax dollars into underperforming districts and contributing to the state’s famously high property taxes.

With its extra aid, Christie said, a town like South Orange would receive 912 percent more money, while property taxes there would go down by $3,700.

Getting a new school funding formal through the Legislature and then the high court would appear, on its face, to be a very heavy lift.

“Equal across-the-board school funding hasn’t worked in the past and won’t work in the future, because not all things are equal”, said John M. Abeigon, president of the Newark teachers union.

Fifteen districts in Burlington County would receive less aid under Christie’s proposal, including Willingboro, which would potentially lose $14.2 million, and Burlington City, which would potentially lose $5.4 million.

Christie’s proposal also comes as the fiscal year near a close and his proposed roughly $35 billion 2017 budget still pending.

“This is the single most important issue to an overwhelming majority of New Jersey, and if we’re going to amend the constitution, let’s get to it”, Christie said at another point. If his proposal went into effect immediately, it would mean $6,599 in state aid per child.

“This will get mischaracterized in a bunch of ways, I can guarantee you”. It will also be a battle between urban and suburban areas.

“We will slay the dragon of property taxes”, the governor said. “This plan is unfair, it is unjust and it is blatantly unconstitutional”. “Every child deserves an equal opportunity, and every taxpayer deserves fair treatment”. “It will target communities that educate at-risk children, including poor children, children who are learning English, and children with disabilities”.

SCHOOLS: Is NJ school funding fair to the poor? The state Supreme Court has rebuffed past efforts by Christie to reduce funding to the Abbott districts.

In the Millburn School District, aid per pupil is now about $416.

Christie pledged to crisscross the state in the coming months to campaign for his changes.