GARDEN STATE COALITION OF SCHOOLS
TRUSTEES MEETING—OCTOBER 13, 2004

The group met at 3PM in the Board of Education’s meeting room at the East Brunswick Board Office.  The main topic under discussion was S1701, with a lengthy discussion of ideas and exchange of information on the subject.       

·        Marjorie Heller reported that the phone campaign to remind member
districts to pay dues has been successful.  Superintendents will help with the ongoing effort by reminding colleagues.

·        Walter Mahler surveyed the meeting attendees on S1701-related activities in various districts and localities.  Activities are various and widespread, with BOE’s passing anti-1701 resolutions, superintendents and BOE members meeting with local legislators, and parent groups becoming more active.

·        LynneS trickland reported that education groups are coming together to support repeal/amendment of S1701.  Some local papers have supported the legislation.  There was a suggestion that anti-S1701 editorials be scanned and included in future FYI’s.

·        As discussed at an earlier meeting, there will be no formal GSCS meeting at the NJSBA Convention in Atlantic City.  Everyone attending from the GSCS will be an emissary of the group, and Lynne asked that we keep our ears to the ground for S1701 related intelligence. 

·        Superintendent Rath of Mt. Laurel announced that her district will be holding a summit meeting on February 10, 2005.  Participants will include representatives of local groups and legislators.  The legislators will take questions from the audience.  Lynne remarked that we learn something new from each local forum.  She also mentioned that Ewing will be holding a forum within the next few months.

·        Tonight Bergen County “Dollars and Sense” and the Paramus Schools, Janice Dime Sup’t., are co-hosting a meeting on school funding, property taxes, and S1701.  They are anticipating a crowd of 1,000 or so. Lynne is a featured speaker/panelist.

·        Linda Nelson said that in Scotch Plains-Fanwood the PTA has a legislative team, and mentioned that the PTA as a whole has positioned itself at the state and national level as one of the leading child advocacy groups. Lynne is an invited speaker to the SPF PTA Forum on October 25.

·        Gail Cohen of Cherry Hill said that they have had successful one-on-one meetings with their legislators.  (N.B.— The effective ‘triangulation’ of local member district Cherry Hill  and GSCS efforts in Trenton has resulted in Senator Adler introducing an S1701 amendment (S1945) that would take hazardous route transportation out from under the cap.)  Cherry Hill PTA’s are conducting letter writing campaigns for repeal/amendment of S1701.

·        Stuart Schnur suggested that the FYI’s be spread far and wide in local districts by using e-mail “trees”.

·        Lynne announced that there will be more “treks to Trenton”, and encouraged “trekkers” to bring “regular people” from their districts, so legislators and staffers can see an array of faces.

·        Lynne also mentioned that the Constitutional Convention Task Force may hold more invitation-only hearings, including one for education-related organizations. GSCS is working in a coalition with the LEE Group and the Education Law Center to address Property Tax Convention issues. GSCS co-signed a letter with the other education groups noting the lack of a sitting member on the Property Tax Convention Task Force [PTCTF] who represents the education community. In it letter, the education coalition group requested PTCTF Chairman Van Horn to dedicate 2 days for special hearings on education where all the participating groups would have an opportunity to present to the Task Force.

·         Lynne noted that GSCS Work Group efforts, beginning with July, August and September meetings in Trenton, as well as staff to staff follow up, are showing productive results in that Assemblymen Greenwald and Cryan will put together a package of S1701 amendments that will address cap restrictions. A number of other amendment bills are anticipated as well.

·        A3362/Greenwald for full funding of extraordinary aid for special education in FY05  has been introduced and will probably move quickly through the legislature.

·        There was a question of whether Senator Doria will re-introduce legislation to mandate full-day kindergarten. It is believed he will.

A special guest for the GSCS October Board meeting was Pat Meyer, Esq., Executive Administrator and Coordinator for the Council on Local Mandates.  Ms. Meyer explained the Council’s role in resolving disputes over the constitutionality of unfunded mandates.  If the Council finds that a mandate is unfunded, then the mandate “goes away.”  This was the case in the recent ruling on the radon testing mandate.  Ms. Meyer encouraged the attendees to visit the Council’s website at www.nj.gov/localmandates/.