Additional $203K in State Aid for Heights School District

Hasbrouck Heights school district will receive yet another bump in state aid with an additional $203,524 for the 2012-2013 school year.

Governor Chris Christie pledged Tuesday during his budget address he would increase state aid to New Jersey school districts for the second year in a row. The additional aid brings the total amount for the coming school year to $1,083,148, according to figures released by the state Department of Education late Thursday.

After slashing the district’s state aid in 2010 by almost half, the district got back $486,146 in 2011 first with a boost of $243,073 at the start of the year and then Christie added more funding towards schools in July doubling  the amount of aid for the 2011-2012 school year.

trustees and administration are in the process of preparing the 2012-2012 school budget which will be presented at a public hearing next month.

Last month the board decided to move its school board election to November while also eliminating the need for a public vote on proposed budgets that come within the mandated 2 percent cap. No public vote will be expected unless the board presents a budget that goes above 2 percent. In that case the district would have the excess amount up for public vote via referendum in Novemeber.

Last April, taxpayers approved the school budget with a tax levy of $23,876,774, a roughly one percent increase from the previous year. There were no cuts to staff or programs. The additional funding in state aid the district received in July was to be put towards facility improvements such as the installation of wireless technology in the school buildings.