It’s up to governor to sign bill by Tuesday
By Gene Robbins, Managing Editor
By next week, the Board of Education will likely have the power to move school board member elections to the November ballot, or avoid a vote on the school budget entirely.
A bill passed Monday on the last day of the two-year state legislative session allows the moving of elections. It would be effective immediately, if signed by Governor Christie before Tuesday.
It passed overwhelmingly, 62-11 in the Assembly and 34-3 in the Senate.
The bill allows the school to bypass having the April vote on the tax levy that largely finances the local school budget, as long as the district stays under the 2 percent local property tax cap. If that happens, the vote on school board candidates would move to the November general election ballot.
A sampling of board members’ opinion showed the board seems to indicate it is unlikely the board itself would give up the April election on the budget and candidates.
The ability of the voters to cast a ballot is more important than having a November vote, said board member Thomas Kinst.
However, the bill allows two other ways that the school election could be moved to November. The Township Committee governing body could vote to do it, or it could be done by a petition of 15 percent of the number of votes in the last presidential election.
Superintendent Jorden Schiff said board would likely have a discussion — perhaps at the Jan. 23 meeting — whether to bypass a vote on the budget’s local tax levy.
Regardless if there was an election or not, the school would likely send out information and conduct public meetings on how the school budget would be spent, the superintendent said.
”Whether we have a vote or not we will have to do the same type of work to develop a budget with the board and trying to communicate it as effectively as we can,” he said.
One argument to killing off the April elections is cost. Dr. Schiff said the district budgets for $15,000 to $20,000 a year for the election.
”It’s not insignificant but it’s still money that could be spent somewhere else,” he said.
The main contention against the April vote is that a small percentage of voters bothered to turn out. Eliminating a vote on the tax levy to support the budget makes the budget approval process the same as the local or county government.
Proposed budgets are reviewed by the state Department of Education to ensure efficiency, advocates pointed out.