State lawmakers question school funning formula
By: Katie Sobko
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... As Education Commissioner Kevin Dehmer testified before the state Assembly Budget Committee on morning of April 21, [2025] the funding needs of his department took a back seat to the way school funding affects local districts.
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Dehmer, who was testifying in a customary hearing that allows lawmakers to question state government department heads about their plans for funding in the budget proposed by Governor Phil Murphy, explained how the department calculates school aid.
..... During his opening remarks, Dehmer said the amounts of state aid distributed to New Jersey school districts are the result of analysis of multiple years of information rather than a "single year of property valuation and income data."
..... "This shift will bring greater stability to the formula's measure of a community's capacity to support its education costs, he said.
..... Dehmer said the department has also proposed a mechanism to "allocate supplemental aid to qualified districts that need additional flexibility in their tax levy growth limitation," which would be districts "taxing below their local share and spending below adequacy."
..... The nearly four-hour hearing included a tense moment between Assemblyman Gerry Scharfenberge, R-Middletown, and Assemblywoman Eliana Pintor Marin, the Newark Democrat who chairs the committee, as he took aim at the funding decisions of Newark schools, including spending on a museum and catering.
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Pintor Marin cut off Scharfenbergere's complaint to point out that there are more than 40,000 students in the Newark city schools served by a budget of more than $1 billion.
..... She noted that the district had a loss of about $37 million while seeing an increase in enrollment of almost 2,000 students.
..... "If we're going to sit here and talk about yeas ago when Newark was slashed over 5% of their budget and we laid off 400 teachers no after school progrmas, no crisis counselors, one guidance counselor per 400 students ... we should have been ashamed of ourselves, but nobody was upset there," she said.
..... Pinto Martin went on to day the district has schools hat are well over capacity and at least one facility still in use that hosted President Abraham Lincoln.
..... Scharferberger said he was "trying to point out some of the areas where their might be room for a little tightening."
..... "We don't want to deny any school district what they need to operate and offer a full and adequate education, but there may be room ... for some efficiency there," he said.
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Scharfenberger said school funding has "erupted into a major issue around the state," noting that when aid goes down, the state's message to districts asking for more is "three things: either cut teachers, close schools or raise taxes."
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Cuts have led to increased pressure on districts to find programs, or in some cases staff members, to cut in order to limit the impact on the local tax levy.
..... Assemblyman Gary Schaer, D-Passaic, asked about changes in federal funding and how it will affect the state.
..... Dehmer explained that changes at the federal level are "coming in quick succession," so the state is learning to "react as we go."
..... "There's certain instances that have already come to pass where we have gone the litigation route in order to secure resources that we believe should stay in New Jersey," he said. "The idea here is to make sure we offer the programs that are laid out in the federal government in New Jersey as expected."
..... the commissioner said it's "disheartening" to see almost half of the staff at the federal Department of Education let go, adding that "we will continue tom move along as things arise, but there isn't a clear road map for where things are headed."
NJ Education Department stands firm on DEI
..... The hearing was held just days after Dehmer's office submitted a letter to the Trump administration regarding access to federal funding in exchange for cutting diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
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The letter a response to correspondence sent by the U.S. Department of Education earlier this month, [04/2025] noted that the state sues federal financial assistance to benefit students, schools and communities.
..... The NJDOE is unaware of any changes in federal law or regularizations that would necessitate the provision of additional certification beyond those that it or New Jersey LEAs have already provided, or that would warrant material change in the terms and conditions of its award of federal funds," Dehmer said in the letter. "LEAs" are local education agencies.
..... He went on to say the federal government;s request referred to "certain DEI practices" or "illegal DEI," but doesn't define what those would be and that there are "no known federal or New Jersey State laws prohibiting diversity, equity, or inclusion."
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The department is responsible for providing support to teachers and school districts for all of the 1.4 million students in the state.
What's in Murphy's budget for schools?
..... The governor's proposed budget for fiscal year 2026 includes $21.5 billion for the Education Department, an increase of $425 million, or 2% more than the adjusted appropriation for fiscal year 2025. That includes $14,.139 billion in state aid to districts.
..... Among the initiatives the governor's budget aims to fund is the continued expansion of preschool programs, with $10 million available for that as well as $7.5 million for a new grant program to help school districts improve student proficiency in mathematics and literacy and a new $3 million grant program to help districts develop policies restricting student cell phone sue in schools.
..... Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. email: sobko@northjersey.com