Corzine Fails to Provide New School Funding Plan

Governor Corzine is pushing for a new school funding plan. Time is of the essesence as districts are creating budgets for next year already. If a new plan is to be introduced, it needs to be done so soon.

D’oh!

This isn’t anything new. Last July when Corzine announced his four property tax reform committees and pumped everyone up with, “Let’s make history!” it was known that a new school funding formula was needed. More than have of all the money Trenton handles goes to schools. If the state wants to reduce that number, it needs to reallocate the money that goes to schools.

But property tax reform has not occcurred. The end of 2006 came without anything. January ended without any reform. Do not cry now that we need a new funding formula. Joe Citizen has known that all along.

Governor Corzine has been unimpressive thus far. Other than take the easy path of raising taxes, he has not come through yet on one reform measure and certainly has not put the state’s fiscal mess in order. As far as anyone can tell, we owe even more today than when Corzine took office last year. The honeymoon is over, governor.

The Legislature has no new school funding plan kicking around. It is unlikely that anything new will be introduced before the hard deadline of notifying schools of the funding scheme for next year. Property tax reform is dead in New Jersey. That falls squarely at the governor’s desk.

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