EDITORIAL: School budget is fair and reasonable, though
But the school budget on the ballot deserves your support.
In New Jersey’s peculiar tax system, the bulk of local services is financed by local property taxes, a holdover from our long-ago days as an English colony.
Back then, property taxes were deemed as the most reasonable method of financing schools and local government because only the wealthy owned property and, hence, only the wealthy paid the tax.
Of course, things have changed since then, but we’re still mired in our property tax reliance. The state has attempted to correct this by creating several tax rebate programs aimed at reducing the impact of property taxes.
So before we continue to explain why the budget deserves voters’ support, let’s make clear that unless you have taken advantage of each of the rebate programs to which you are entitled (the NJ SAVER, Homestead Rebate, property tax reimbursement for seniors and the property tax deduction/credit program), you’re paying too much regardless of the rate.
Why New Jersey forces residents to jump through these hurdles is a discussion for another day, but we urge all property owners to make certain they are collecting the maximum they are allowed to under the law. It’s your best chance to reduce the impact of your property tax bill in the manner the policy wonks in Trenton imagined it.
But when considering what position to take on budget questions, we have always asked if the budget is reasonable when compared to similar districts’ budgets, and if the budget is appropriate for educating the students of our community.
If a budget meets both criteria, then it seems unreasonable for us not to endorse it.
And we believe this budget meets both of these concerns.
Is there wasteful spending in the budget? Almost as certainly as there is waste in any operation the size and scope of Hillsborough’s schools. But it’s important to note that whatever waste there may be has been minimized to the point Hillsborough boasts some of the lowest costs of any district.
That’s the proof in the pudding we spend less per pupil for administrators and administrative costs and less per pupil for maintaining facilities.
In fact, the budgeting in Hillsborough of late has been so austere that we may risk falling behind in educating our children the second criteria we consider.
Hillsborough currently spends just under the state average for classroom instruction, and that’s not necessarily good. Keeping such spending too low for too long could end up lowering scores on standardized tests. We’re a long way from that, but we still need to be vigilant and careful.
And that’s what we think this budget is vigilant and careful. The Board of Education has recognized certain needs in the district for example, the synthetic athletic field which are necessary because of the increased enrollment.
And out of concern for taxpayers, the board has chosen not to expand staff levels in several areas, choosing to hold off on the introduction of several programs.
Property taxes are high because of our reliance on them for local services, a problem exacerbated by rapid increases in local property values. But they are not high because of poor planning or mismanagement at the schools.
Vote yes on the proposed school budget on April 16.