With few exceptions, the school budgets being presented in districts across Middlesex County, and most of New Jersey for that matter, are bringing bad news for residents — tax increases. Again.
Just about every Middlesex County school district covered by Greater Media Newspapers is talking about a tax increase, a topic that has become all too familiar in recent years. School tax rates are going up anywhere from half a cent to 28 cents, and that means the owner of the average-assessed property in many of our towns will most likely be dishing out hundreds more next year than they did this school year. Some have it far worse than others, with increases of beyond $200 and, in Spotswood’s case, more than $300.
As usual, the state is getting much of the blame for this problem, and to a large extent it is the state budget and the decisions of our state leaders over the years that are to blame. Although school districts have long relied on state aid to fund a certain percentage of the budget each year, that aid has generally been flat for four years now. As a direct result, residents in our coverage area have been faced with unprecedented property tax hikes.
And many warn the problems could worsen in future years, thanks to a new state limit on budget surpluses, which had been a cushion that helped districts cover unforeseen expenses or soften tax hikes.
Boards of education in general are struggling to deal with the current scenario, constantly putting off wish-list items that would benefit students, and in some cases making unpopular budget cuts to staff or programs. But these are necessary realities, and it has become apparent that our local officials are just going to have to work harder to keep taxes in check.
While we understand that our state’s system of funding education needs fixing, and that many budgetary costs cannot be controlled, there is clearly too much of a reliance on the taxpayer to make up for all other shortcomings. Local officials by and large owe it to their communities to take a harder look at their budgets and strike a better balance between what they’re providing and at what cost.