Two-thirds of schools in line for more aid
Corzine provides a peek at his controversial plan

Sunday, December 02, 2007

BY JOHN MOONEY
Star-Ledger Staff

Gov. Jon Corzine said yesterday a majority of school districts would receive significant increases in state aid under his upcoming school funding plan, and he did not rule out the possibility that every district could get at least a small bump in money from Trenton.

A specific accounting of how much each district would receive remains fluid until updated enrollment numbers are factored in, Corzine said in a 45-minute interview with The Star-Ledger.

However, he revealed that preliminary estimates indicate up to two-thirds of the state's 618 districts would get a marked increase in funding under a plan that sends the bulk of about $450 million in additional money to middle-class communities that have rising low-income and immigrant populations.

Providing the first look at how the plan would affect local schools, Corzine said the beneficiaries would include a handful of the poorest districts that already have been helped by court-mandated funds, as well as a few wealthy ones.

Acknowledging the money pressures on all districts, Corzine said small increases in the 1 to 2 percent range may be feasible for the remainder of the state -- "so that everybody gets at least a little. We haven't decided that yet. It's a matter of how much we can afford."

A full public presentation, including the town-by-town figures, is expected in the next 10 days.

With a state budget yet to be proposed, neither the governor nor administration officials said where the additional money will come from. How much the state can afford in the face of a $3billion deficit is among the many issues sure to mark the upcoming funding debate. New Jersey currently distributes nearly $8 billion in direct aid to schools, about a quarter of the state's $33.5 billion budget.

School organizations and others already are picking at Corzine's broad approach to funding, as well as at the various details that have filtered out. But the governor maintained yesterday that the Legislature can approve a new formula in its current session, which ends Jan. 8.

During the interview, over coffee at a Union Township diner, Corzine alternated between optimism about his prospects and realism concerning the political challenges.

"I make no claims that this will be an easy hill to climb," he said.

Senate President Richard Codey (D-Essex) said he suggested the added aid to all districts, calling it "overall a plus for districts." The plan has yet to be formally presented, but Codey predicted it will be approved.

"It won't be an overwhelming majority, but it will be a majority," he said.


NEW STANDARD OF 'ADEQUATE'

Corzine provided the interview at the end of a week during which he and his administration started rolling out details of his long-awaited plan to legislators, school associations and interest groups.

Breaking from the current court-mandated system that focuses on the poorest districts, Corzine's plan directs money based on specific needs of each district. It would tie funding to the number of students in each district who are low-income or have limited English skills -- a recognition of the greater expenses for programs like tutoring and bilingual education.

It would set new guidelines for what amount is "adequate" for each child and would weigh a community's own wealth and income to determine the state's share. It also would include additional funding for preschool in any district with low-income students, and add money for school security.

Corzine called the plan's spending models on "the high end," and he rebutted critics who have said many schools would be forced to cut programs and many communities would come under greater pressure to raise property taxes.

"We will still be spending among the most in the nation, and very well may move up," he said. "I don't know why anyone would say it's dumbing down when we are trying to improve the education for a broad set of children."

New Jersey was the second highest-spending state in the country in 2005, spending about $13,800 per pupil overall, according to the most recent figures available from the Census Bureau. The national average that year was $8,700 per pupil.

The state budget puts New Jersey's average this year at about $16,000.

Corzine cited an array of suburban districts that have high numbers of impoverished or immigrant families, without the resources to help them. Those towns include Edison, Clifton, Bloomfield, Dover and Carteret, he said.

"The places where people are really, really strapped," Corzine said. "We have tried to build a formula that acknowledges those needs."

Much of the toughest criticism has come from those representing the 31 urban districts represented in the state Supreme Court's landmark Abbott vs. Burke rulings, which seek to lift the schooling of the poorest children to that of the state's richest.

Corzine maintained that the Abbott districts would not be hurt, and that a half-dozen of the lowest-spending among them could see significant increases. But he repeated that he wants to remove the special status of these districts -- something the court would have to approve -- and extend their programs to poor students who live outside their borders.

"The point is, it is not expansive enough," he said of Abbott funding.

Most legislators and school associations continue to take a wait-and-see approach toward the plan until specific numbers are released. Some Republican leaders are especially skeptical that it will provide property tax relief to their districts, something they said has been downplayed in the latest discussions.

"This all sounds good, but we don't know what it really means," said Assemblyman Joseph Malone (R-Burlington). "There is a time bomb ticking in some of these suburban and rural districts. They will go off the wall if they don't see some real relief."



John Mooney may be reached at jmooney@starledger.com or (973) 392-1548.