$103M In COVID Aid Diverted To NJ Schools: Here's Who Gets Relief

NEW JERSEY — More than $100 million will flow back into New Jersey schools that face funding cuts under Gov. Phil Murphy’s proposed budget, if districts submit a written plan for how they’d manage without that extra money.

Gov. Murphy signed Senate bill 3732 into law Monday, which makes $103 million available to eligible districts that would see reduced funding under his proposed 2023-24 budget. The cuts are the result of S2, the law Murphy signed in 2018 that proponents say addresses districts that are underfunded while taking money from districts said to be overfunded.

The supplemental aid money comes from the state’s Property Tax Relief Fund. See full figures below.

Legislators fast-tracked the Democratic-sponsored bill after it was introduced March 16, and both houses had approved it unanimously by March 30. Efforts to address cuts have been underway since state school funding figures were released at the beginning of March. Murphy's proposed budget increased state funding to more than 400 districts, but would bring cuts to scores of others.

Some districts will see less than $1,000 back, but others can request several million back including Jersey City, which faced a $51 million budget loss for next year. The district will be able to claw back $33.7 million under the recently signed bill. Related article —NJ School Aid 2023: Who's Getting More, Who's Getting Less

Not every district facing cuts is included in the list, however. Colts Neck, a K-8 district in Monmouth County, is slated to lose $800,699 under Murphy's proposed budget; it is not listed among the districts where cuts are being reduced.

In addition, there are nine districts that were already receiving between $4,700 and $449,000 in aid, which will be eligible to receive more aid under the law. Why those districts were included in those receiving what's called supplemental aid is unclear.

Those nine districts are:

• Audobon Boro, Camden: $83,192 available
• Byram Twp., Sussex: $16,292 available
• Cape May City, Cape May: $3,874 available
• Folsom Boro, Atlantic: $59,834 available
• Haddonfield, Camden: $187 available.
• Kenilworth Boro, Union: $66,628 available
• Oceanport Boro, Monmouth: $1,148 available
• Spotswood, Middlesex: $109,486 available
• Quinton Twp., Salem: $4,642 available

And, the 13 districts who have a $0 next to their name for school aid in Murphy's budget are not offered a piece of the $103 million pie.

“I look forward to continuing to work alongside educational stakeholders and legislative partners towards our shared goal of ensuring every New Jersey child receives an education that will set them up for a bright future,” Murphy said Monday.

The proposed cuts had been roundly criticized as Murphy touted an increase in education funding across the state that included an additional $836 million in funding for K-12 schools, and as the state sits on a $10 billion surplus.

One of the hardest hit this year was the Toms River Regional School District, which was set for a $14.4 million reduction in aid, a 31.77 percent cut that would have been cataclysmic, Superintendent Michael Citta has said. The new bill would allow Toms River officials to request $9,518,422 in additional aid.

"This harrowing news was not foreseen as we have been working off a schedule provided by the state," said South Brunswick Superintendent Scott Feder, whose district was saddled with a $4 million cut, a 20.6 percent decrease from 2022-23. “We're basically being asked to run a $160 million organization with unknown information." The newly-signed bill would allow $2,681,738 to go back to South Brunswick Schools.

To be eligible for supplemental funding, districts must submit a written plan to the state Commissioner of Education detailing how they will fund operations in future years without the extra aid. All districts that submit a request will receive additional funding, Murphy’s office said.

Under this legislation, districts that would see a reduction in aid may request additional aid “equal to 66 percent of the difference between the amount they received in the 2022/23 school year and the amount of aid currently proposed for the 2023/24 school year.” However, figures released by the Senate show those numbers are not exact.

This still means some districts are losing money, but the bleed will not be as bad, even as critics called the measure just a bandage on a gaping wound.

Somerset County Assemblyman Roy Frieman, one of the Democrats who sponsored the bill, said some on the other side of the aisle saw the bill as “a Band-Aid put on a shark bite.”

“I understand that perspective,” Freiman said last week. “But I would push back and say, it’s more like 103 million Band-Aids being put on this shark bite.”

Lawmakers on both sides have criticized S2 and asked for the state to change the formula.

Below is a PDF file of the districts included in the new bill, how much supplemental aid they may request, and what the budgeted cut to their district is.

$103M Additional Aid to NJ Schools by Michelle Rotuno-Johnson on Scribd

“Teterboro” is included in a line item in the Senate bill. The Bergen County community does not have its own district; Bergen County Technical School has a campus in Teterboro, and the town's students go to Hasbrouck Heights, which is not mentioned in the bill.

To see the full list of district funding figures released by Murphy's office, click here. And to see numbers from 2022, click here.

This story contains reporting by Patch’s Karen Wall.