School Officials Prepare for School Budget Hearing

With the school budget failed, school officials and budget supporters will gather at the Township Committee tonight to weigh in on the pending budget revision.

The Township Committee will hold two hearings on the school budget, the first starting at 8 p.m. in Town Hall, and the second on Monday, May 10, when final action will be taken.

The Committee must decide on a number for the Board of Education to use in determining the budget, and the Board must then make decisions on what to cut to get to the new number.

Board of Education member Susan Carlsson, who was elected as Board President at Monday's meeting, said that two members of the Township Committee and two Board of Education representatives met last Friday to discuss the budget situation. In addition to the meeting, the school district also sent comprehensive budget information to the Township Committee, as required by law, for the Committee to review. Carlsson said the committee asked a lot of questions, and the district provided the township with additional documentation on personnel costs by request earlier this week.

While the Township Committee does not have to call for additional cuts in the school budget, a majority of 'no' votes at the polls typically signifies a budget reduction. The last time the school budget failed in 2005, the Township Committee removed over $900,000 from the proposed school budget.

Carlsson said that the district will review the budget and make decisions based on additional cuts at the May 17 and May 24 Board of Education meetings.

"We're not going to have any idea [what the district needs to cut] until the Township Committee gives us a number," Carlsson said. "They dont have to cut anything, and I asked them not to, but they kind of laughed when I asked that."

All of the potential money saving items, such as half-day kindergarten and switching to an eight-period day at Ridge, will once again be considered should the additional cuts be significant, Carlsson said. The Board will likely go back to the original "long" list looked at earlier this year to decide which programs will stay and the others that must go, according to Carlsson.

"A defeated budget means there is going to be cuts," she said. "There really isnt any way to trim around the edges, we lost [over] $5 million between this year and next year, that's a lot of money."

All residents, whether in favor or against the proposed budget, which include more than a 5 percent increase in taxes and $500,000 in program cuts, will have an opportunity to voice their opinion in the public comment section of tonight's meeting.