Senate bill targets change
in FRHSD tax structure
BY LARRY RAMER
Staff Writer
MARLBORO — The members of the Township Council believe that residents pay more than their fair share of taxes to the Freehold Regional High School District and the governing body, along with Mayor Matthew Scannapieco, is now officially supporting a bill in the state Senate that may help change that situation.
The Senate bill, sponsored by state Senate Co-President John O. Bennett III (R-Monmouth), would allow changes to the FRHSD’s funding structure to be made by a majority of voters in the district, Councilman Barry Denkensohn explained.
Current law mandates that a majority of voters in every sending municipality in the FRHSD (a total of eight municipalities) must approve a change in the funding structure in order for such a change to be made, Denkensohn said.
Voters in towns who currently pay less than their fair share of taxes would never vote to change the system, Denkensohn said, adding that the Englishtown Borough Council has already passed a resolution opposing the Senate bill.
According to figures from the 2002-03 school year, the eight towns that make up the FRHSD pay the following percentage of taxes and send the following percentage of students:
• Colts Neck – 5 percent of the students; 10 percent of the taxes.
• Englishtown – 1 percent of the students; 0.5 percent of the taxes.
• Farmingdale – 0.5 percent of the students; 0.4 percent of the taxes.
• Freehold Borough – 5 percent of the students; 3.6 percent of the taxes.
• Freehold Township – 15 percent of the students; 19.4 percent of the taxes.
• Howell – 30 percent of the students; 20.8 percent of the taxes.
• Manalapan – 22 percent of the students; 20.2 percent of the taxes.
• Marlboro – 22 percent of the students; 25 percent of the taxes.
The Senate bill, which evolved from meetings that included Denkensohn, Scannapieco, representatives of other affected towns and Bennett, is the fastest way of making the FRHSD funding system fairer, Scannapieco said. The mayor added that this matter directly affects the taxpayers of Marlboro and other towns.
"This is an issue of importance to the taxpayers. For so many years other towns have been … getting their children educated on the backs of Freehold Township, Marlboro and Colts Neck," Scannapieco said.
"The object [of the Senate bill] is to make the [funding] system fairer to all residents. I hope it has a good chance of passing," Denkensohn said.