State Aid Numbers Released For Township and Local Districts

In the days following Gov. Chris Christie's to the state assembly, the numbers for the state aid from Trenton have started to come down to the municipal level. 

For Howell Township, the news appears to be good for the school district, while the municipality will take a minimal hit.

Aid numbers for school districts around the state were released on Wednesday and as can be seen on the chart below, the numbers for the Howell Township Public Schools and the neighboring Freehold Regional High School District saw growth.

The additional money was part of the $250 million that the governor promised to go toward education in his speech. The governor released a statement about the proposed aid saying, "Last year, our state faced severe fiscal challenges and we had to make some very difficult choices. Reductions to education funding were among the most agonizing choices," he said. "Because of the foundation we set in last year's budget, and our responsible management of the state's finances, New Jersey is on firmer footing and we are able to put more funding into classrooms throughout new Jersey."

On the municipal level, the state also released the numbers for that aid as well. Last year Trenton gave Howell $7,921,317 in total aid and also gave the five fire districts a total of $15,713 for the 2010 calendar and 2011 fiscal year. 

For the 2011 calendar year and the 2012 fiscal year the township looks to receive $7,918,357 in state aid. The five fire districts meanwhile will receive the same amount of money. 

Mayor Robert Walsh said he was "cautiously optimistic," about the release of the state aid numbers. "I was hoping for a little bit extra, but flat aid is better than the cuts we had last year," he said. 

The mayor said the reason he was holding back some of his excitement at the numbers from the state, was the fact that he still had yet to see how much money will be going back to Trenton for the pension and health insurance bills. "Just because it's flat aid doesn't mean the bill from the state isn't higher," he said. 

Walsh said he will need to speak to township Manager Helene Schlegel and Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey Fillatreault to know where those numbers come into play.

The township's first budget meeting is set for March 10 at 6 p.m. Prior to that, the board of education is scheduled to present and approve its initial budget for the upcoming school year at the March 2 meeting. The meeting is slated for the Middle School North Cafetorium starting at approximately 8 p.m. 

The school budget is then set to be submitted to the county on March 4 before a public hearing which is slated for the March 23 board meeting.