West Orange Will Get More School Aid From NJ Under Murphy Plan

WEST ORANGE, NJ — West Orange is expected to get $9,013,674 more than last year in school aid from New Jersey as part of the latest state budget proposal, according to figures released Thursday.

Gov. Phil Murphy's administration has proposed $19.2 billion for New Jersey pre-K to 12 schools for the fiscal year 2023 budget. Read More: NJ School Aid: Who's Getting More, Who's Getting Less

West Orange would get a total of $29,372,985 under the proposal, an increase of 44.27 percent from last year.

State aid is an influential factor in a school district's share of property taxes. Many districts say that cuts – or even flat spending – forces them to raise taxes for local homeowners.

Property taxes in New Jersey are made up of three parts: school, municipal and county. Last year, the average property owner in the state paid roughly 52.9 percent of their total for school taxes, 29.4 percent for municipal taxes and 17.8 percent for county taxes.

In West Orange, that breakdown was 61.1 percent for school taxes, 25.7 percent for municipal taxes and 13.2 percent for county taxes.

• See related article: See How Every NJ Town Ranks For Property Taxes On New List
• See related article: West Orange Homeowners Pay 53rd Highest Property Taxes In NJ
• See related article: Tax Gap In Essex County; Many Wealthier Towns Pay Lower Rates

This article contains reporting by Josh Bakan, Patch staff

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