The Upper Freehold Regional School District Board of Education has introduced a tentative budget of $43.36 million to support the operation of the school district during the 2019-20 school year.
The tentative budget was introduced during a board meeting on March 13 and has been submitted for review to the Monmouth County superintendent of schools, which is an arm of the state Department of Education.
The board has proposed collecting a local tax levy totaling $27.28 million from residential and commercial property owners in Allentown and Upper Freehold Township to support the budget. Upper Freehold property owners would pay $23.69 million and Allentown property owners would pay $3.59 million, according to district administrators.
The remainder of the budget is supported by revenues from other sources.
The board has scheduled a public hearing on the budget for 6 p.m. May 1 in the Newell Elementary School library/media center, 27 High St., Allentown. Residents may ask questions about or comment on the budget at that time. The tentative budget may be revised until the date of the public hearing.
According to district administrators, the 2019-20 school tax rate will be $1.8946 per $100 of assessed valuation in Upper Freehold. The average home in the township is assessed at $488,300. The owner of that home would pay $9,251 in school taxes in 2019-20.
According to district administrators, the 2019-20 school tax rate will be $1.8682 per $100 of assessed valuation in Allentown. The average home in the borough is assessed at $290,842. The owner of that home would pay $5,433 in school taxes in 2019-20.
School taxes are one item on a property owner’s tax bill, which also includes municipal taxes and Monmouth County taxes. The amount of taxes a property owner pays is determined by the assessed value of the individual’s property and the tax rate set by each taxing entity.
Upper Freehold Regional’s budget for the 2018-19 school year totaled $42.87 million and was supported by a tax levy of $26.6 million. The tentative budget for 2019-20 proposes a $490,000 increase in the total budget and a $680,000 increase in the tax levy.
The district includes three schools – the Newell Elementary School, the Stone Bridge Middle School and Allentown High School. As of Oct. 15, 2018, the district’s estimated enrollment was 1,863 pupils.