Bill Text: NJ S667 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes a formula for the distribution of State aid to school districts.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 5-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-11 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Education Committee [S667 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-S667-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
220th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2022 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator MICHAEL J. DOHERTY
District 23 (Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senators Oroho, Pennacchio, Connors and Holzapfel
SYNOPSIS
Establishes a formula for the distribution of State aid to school districts.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning State school aid and supplementing Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Whereas, Paragraph 1 of Article III states, "The powers of the government shall be divided among three distinct branches, the legislative, executive, and judicial. No person or persons belonging to or constituting one branch shall exercise any of the powers properly belonging to either of the others, except as expressly provided in this Constitution;" and
Whereas, Paragraph 1 of Section IV of Article VIII states, "The Legislature shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of free public schools for the instruction of all the children in the State between the ages of five and eighteen years;" and
Whereas, Paragraph 2 of Section IV of Article VIII states, "The fund for the support of free public schools...shall be annually appropriated to the support of free public schools, and for the equal benefit of all the people of the State;" and
Whereas, Paragraph 7 of Section I of Article VIII states that the income tax is to be, "...annually appropriated...exclusively for the purpose of reducing or offsetting property taxes;" now, therefore,
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of P.L.2007, c.260 (C.18A:7F-43 et al.) or any other law to the contrary, State school aid for the first school year beginning after the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) and for each subsequent school year shall be provided to school districts as follows:
a. The Department of Education shall determine each public school district's projected resident enrollment for the budget year and the total Statewide public school resident enrollment.
b. The State Treasurer shall determine the total projected revenue from the State income tax for the budget year.
c. State aid for each school district for the budget year shall be determined pursuant to the following formula:
TDSA = (TITR/TSE) * TDE
where
TDSA is School District State Aid;
TITR is Total Projected Income Tax Revenue;
TSE is Total Projected Resident Enrollment; and
TDE is District Projected Resident Enrollment.
2. This act shall take
effect immediately.
STATEMENT
Whereas, paragraph 1 of Article III states, "The powers of the government shall be divided among three distinct branches, the legislative, executive, and judicial. No person or persons belonging to or constituting one branch shall exercise any of the powers properly belonging to either of the others, except as expressly provided in this Constitution."
Whereas, paragraph 1 of Section IV of Article VIII states, "The Legislature shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of free public schools for the instruction of all the children in the State between the ages of five and eighteen years."
Whereas, paragraph 2 of Section IV of Article VIII states, "The fund for the support of free public schools...shall be annually appropriated to the support of free public schools, and for the equal benefit of all the people of the State."
Whereas, paragraph 7 of Section I of Article VIII states that the income tax is to be, "...annually appropriated...exclusively for the purpose of reducing or offsetting property taxes."
This bill establishes a new formula for the allocation of State aid to school districts to satisfy the Legislature's constitutional responsibility to provide for a system of free public schools. The bill provides State aid by determining a per pupil amount of State aid and multiplying that amount by the school district's projected resident enrollment for the budget year. The per pupil State aid amount is determined after the State Treasurer projects the total revenue amount from the State income tax for the budget year. Following the determination of the projected total State income tax, the Department of Education is to divide that amount by the total projected resident enrollment of the school districts. The department determines each school district's State aid by multiplying this per pupil State aid amount by the district's projected resident enrollment.
