Somerset Hills, Bedminster School Districts Would Benefit From Christie's State Aid Proposal

Bernardsville/Bedminster, NJ - The Somerset Hills and Bedminster School Districts would receive substantial state aid increases, according to the new school funding formula proposed by Gov. Christie.

Christie unveiled the change for New Jersey’s schools that would equalize spending for each student in the state on Tuesday.

That translates into potentially lower property tax bills for residents in high-cost areas, but an enormous funding loss in poorer, urban areas known as Abbott districts.

Christie’s plan would equalize spending to a level of $6,599 per student in the state. That figure came from the $9.1 billion spent by the state this year divided by each enrolled student in grades kindergarten through 12.

A statement released by the governor’s office Tuesday blamed the state’s “Abbott” districts – 31 school districts in court-classified “poorer urban” areas – for taking up so much of the state’s taxpayer money and funding aid.

The New Jersey Education Association assailed Christie’s plan, calling it despicable and claiming it would set the state’s education progress back decades.

But what would the governor’s plan, if implemented, mean to each individual school district in the state?

Somerset Hills and Bedminster School Districts would see large increases in state aid, according to nj.com, which compiled a list of data showing the current per-pupil aid by district versus what that figure would be under Christie’s plan.

The Somerset Hills School District, which includes students from Bernardsville, Far Hills, Peapack-Gladstone and Bedminster, currently receives only $446.77 per pupil in state aid for the 2016-2017 school year. If the governor's plan goes through, that number would balloon to $6,053.23 - an 1,355 percent increase.

The Bedminster School District currently receives only $1,309.19 per pupil in state aid for the 2016-2017 school year. If the governor's plan goes through, that number would balloon to $5,190.81 - an 396 percent increase.

A look at the data shows students in the Abbott districts stand to lose millions under the proposed plan. Camden would see a $23,634.77 loss per student, followed by Asbury Park, where funding would decrease $22,384.78 for each pupil.

See nj.com's full list of state districts here.

(Image via Shutterstock)

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