I attended the Governor’s budget town hall in the Borough of Red Bank this week, which continued the Governor’s efforts to bring transparency to the budget process – something that my colleagues in Trenton have also promised to do since too often there is little time to get our arms around everything in the budget as the deadline looms. The Governor could not attend as he recovers from his injuries, but the State Treasurer and various cabinet secretaries did an admirable job. I was particularly encouraged to see a large group of Freehold Boro residents in attendance since their school faces financial challenges unlike any other in Monmouth County (and perhaps all of New Jersey).

They don’t qualify for Abbott funding as other lower-income districts do, but they don’t have a local tax base that is even close to sufficient to fund their schools. It reminds me of my experience in attending college . . . my family wasn’t “poor” enough to qualify for enough aid for me to attend, but we didn’t have the money to do it on our own either. Freehold is stuck in the middle, and programs are being cut that puts these kids at a severe disadvantage in life. Commissioner Davy from the Dept of Education told them the new school funding formula would do a lot to alleviate inequities in funding, and that can’t come soon enough. The kids in 31 Abbott districts receive nearly 60% of the state’s educational funding, while the other 500+, which educate 4 out of 5 of New Jersey’s kids, have to live with what’s left. The Abotts need extra help, without question. The long-term price of those kids falling through the cracks would be much greater and we have a moral obligation to help them.

But the pendulum has swung too far and I hope the new formula will be fair to all of New Jersey. It was great to see so many people in the community come out for this meeting since family life and work schedules make it tough on everyone. Elected officials don’t have all of the answers, and this sort of guidance from our fellow citizens is essential.