Officials looking at May 9 for first review session
By Ruth Luse
According to the New Jersey School Boards Association, only 53.4 percent the lowest rate of approval since 1994 of the proposed school budgets on April 18 ballots were approved by voters in New Jersey school districts.
Hopewell Valley Regional’s budget was among the 46.6 percent that were defeated. The last time Valley voters said no to a school spending plan was 1998.
So what happens next, now that Valley school and municipal officials are in the midst of what the state Department of Education calls the "Defeated Budget Process"?
Locally, a public hearing with the governing bodies of all three municipalities and the school board is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, May 9. The purpose of the public hearing will be to review and discuss the school budget with school board representatives and the public, according to township Mayor Vanessa Sandom.
"Upon completion of the review process, the governing bodies of each municipality are required by law to adopt a resolution to certify the tax levy to the Mercer County Board of Taxation. Each municipality will separately discuss and vote on adopting resolutions certifying the tax levy at publicly noticed meetings, tentatively slated for Wednesday, May 10 or Thursday, May 11, Ms. Sandom said Wednesday.
"The process of scrutinizing the Hopewell Valley school budget is on the shoulders of the elected officials of the three municipalities. We have an obligation to the voters, as well as the children of our district, to fairly and objectively look for ways to reduce some of the line items in the current proposed budget," said township Committeeman Mark Iorio Wednesday.
"Each of us brings a different level of experience to the table. However, none of us are school budget experts and although we will do our part to analyze the budget, we collectively feel the need to hire an outside firm to help guide us through this tedious process," Mr. Iorio concluded.
During the "Defeated Budget Process," the school board and the three municipal governing bodies all have responsibilities:
School board responsibilities According to a memo from the Mercer County superintendent of schools, the school district must send a list of required budget items to the three municipal governing bodies (Hopewell Township Committee, Hopewell Borough Council and Pennington Borough Council). This should include:
The proposed 2006-2007 budget;
A salary schedule for all employees (May 2006 and May 2007);
Pupil enrollment by grade as of June 30, 2005, Oct. 15, 2005 and Oct. 15, 2006 (projected).
Number of schools and classrooms in each (including pupil capacity of each);
Detailed tuition analysis;
Analysis of professional and nonprofessional staff (May 2006 and projected for June 2007 including list of retirees);
Proposed capital projects and/or deposits into capital reserve;
Copies of school board’s most recent QAAR (Quality Assurance Annual Report annual audit, comparative spending guides and state Report Card;
Any other information deemed appropriate by the country superintendent.
As soon as possible, district administration should set up a meeting date with municipal officials to review the defeated budget information. At this point, officials plan to meet May 9. The Open Public Meetings Act would apply to this meeting if the school board or any of the municipal governing bodies has a majority present.
Municipal government responsibilities The end result of the work of officials of the three towns is to certify general fund tax levies (each town is separate) to the Mercer County Board of Taxation. This must be done by May 19.
Municipal officials have no power to change the debt service levy, because debt service is not subject to voter approval.
Opportunities to reduce costs include shared services pacts with local communities and coordinated transportation services with other districts; joint purchasing of copy paper, school supplies, fuel, etc.; privatization options (operations, technology); and energy efficient practices (light bulbs and four-day week in summer an option Hopewell Valley has used for several years).
Next steps for school board and municipalities:
Board revises budget The school board is not bound by municipal officials’ specific line-item reductions. It is only bound by the total amount of the reduction in the tax levy.
The district must submit a revised budget including all supporting documentation items and CEIFA (Comprehensive Education Improvement and Financing Act of 1996) calculations updated as appropriate.
If the school board does not dispute reductions, the county superintendent will ascertain whether the revised budget is sufficient for T&E (Thorough and Efficient) for final budget approval.
If, however, the school board disputes reductions, the county superintendent will schedule a combined meeting with the school board and the governing bodies to reach agreement. If revised tax levies are agreed upon, the county taxation board would be notified.
If no tax levy is certified by May 19, or regional constituents (Hopewell Borough, Hopewell Township and Pennington) certify different amounts then the commissioner must certify the amount under law, even if the dispute continues.
If a tax levy is certified, but no agreement is reached, the school board can file an application for restoration for some or all of the reductions, within 10 working days of the tax levy certification. The governing bodies have 10 working days after receipt of the application to submit comments.
There is no requirement under law or regulation that the commissioner’s decisions on applications for restoration will be finalized before tax bills are mailed. Generally all decisions are completed by August.

