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GSCS Email-Net Archive - Recent and Selected Posting

GSCS Email-Net 11-16-10

GSCS News 'Email-Net' Archive, beginning 2009

6-2-10 RACE TO THE TOP (RTTT) 'NJ STYLE': It is what it is ...but what exactly is it? Race to the Top application is caught in a crossfire of reports - more information and clarity is needed

3-4-10 GSCS Email-Net: Summit @ Summit Report - A New Day in Trenton?

2-12-10 Gov Chrisite's Message re Current Yr Deficit

2-16-10 Email-net March @ Summit at Summit

1-26-10 GSCS Email-Net Christie Era Begins

1-20-10 GSCS Heads Up FYI.docx

1-6-10 GSCS Email-Net Lame Duck Watch

12-15-09 Email-Net

11-9-09 GSCS Email-Net: Request to Trustee Districts

11-6-09 GSCS Email-Net: Important Post-Election Information

11-5-09 GSCS Email-Net: Election Information - Christie on Education - and Request to Member Districts

11-3-09 GSCS Email-Net: Today is Election Day - Coverage, more

10-21-09 GSCS EMAIL-NET: Commissioner Davy to be at GSCS meeting in Atlantic City

10-15-09 GSCS Email-Net: Compare Corzine-Christie re education

9-25-09 GSCS EMAIL-NETOn GSCS Radar Screen, Intro Cons. Cntct

9-14-09 GSCS EMAILNET Welcome 2009-2010

6-24-09 GSCS EMAILNET Heads Up FYI

6-22 & 24 (update) - 09 GSCS EMAILNET FYI re bills A4140, A1489, A4142

6-19-09 a.m. GSCS 'Quick' FYI - State Budget Vote delayed to Thursday, June 25

6-15-09 GSCS Heads Up FYI

6-12-09 EMAILNET

6-4-09 EMAILNET

5-19-09 Treasurer David Rousseau announces additional round of cuts to Gov's proposed State Budget FY2009-2010

5-14-09 GSCS Heads Up - State Aid payments to be delayed into next Fiscal Year

428-09 EMAILNET Abbott & SFRA; DOE before State Budget Committees

4-17-09 EMAILNET Federal Stimulus Title 1 and IDEA Allocations Announced

4-2-09 EMAILNET & GSCS FYI for April 2009

3-27-09 EMAILNET

3-16-09 EMAILNET

3-6-09 GSCS March FYI - Trenton & GSCS Happenings & more

2-23-09 EMAILNET

2-12-09 EMAILNET GSCS Message for State Budget FY10: STABILITY & FAIRNESS

1-30-09 EMAILNET Fed Stimulus Proposal, School Vote, Stability & Fairness

1-24-09 EMAILNET Federal Stimulus proposal - local district impact listing

1-17-09 GSCS EMAILNET & SCHOOL FUNDING OVERVIEW

1-17-09 GSCS EMAILNET

Education excerpts from House Fed Stimulus package in GSCS 1-15-09 Heads Up

GSCS 1-15-09 'Heads Up' - House Releases its Fed Stimulus Package

January 2009 GSCS FYI

1-5-09 EMAILNET Gov Announces Spending Reductions for FY0809 Today

12-21-08 GSCS EMAILNET - Excerpts

10-31-08 EMAILNET

10-17-08 EMAILNET

9-29-08 GSCS EMAILNET

9-12-08 GSCS EMAILNET

7-2-08 EMAILNET FYI

6-17-08 EMAILNET FYI, State Budget Agreement, School Construction bill moving towards passage

6-10-08 GSCS EMAILNET FYI Trenton focus

5-30-08 EMAILNET FYI - GSCS ANNUAL MTG NEWS BRIEFS

4-16-08 EMAILNETSchool Budget Elections early results

1-18-07 GSCS EMAILNET FYI

1-14-08 EMAILNET Governor Corzine Sign funding legisation into law 1-13-08 at Drumthwacket

1-11-08 EMAILNET Funding legislation passes - Aftermath

1-4-08 EMAILNET GSCS statement on current funding proposal - leaning negative

1-3-08 EMAILNET Aid proposal - update & analysis

12-21-07 EMAILNET - GSCS spots 'Giveback' provision in draft bill - a flip flop?

12-19-07 Proposed Funding formula - update

12-12-07 EMAILNET Funding Plan proposal to be released today, no bill yet

12-7-07 EMAILNET Jt Committees schedule hearing on new school funding plan, Commissioner Davy to present

12-6-07 EMAILNET Funding bill - emerging issues

12-1-07 EMAILNET FYI Governor Corzine present new school funding formula concepts

11-30-07 EMAILNET FYI

11-13-07 GSCS EMAILNET

11-6-07 EMAILNET

10-15-07 GSCS EMAILNET

10-1-07 GSCS EMAILNET

071015 EMAILNET

071001 EMAILNET

9-21-07 EMAILNET

7-31-07 EMAILNET Status of School Funding Formula, more

7-10-07 EMAILNET Includes GSCS ADVOCACY PACKET Need for new school funding formula, more

6-29-07 EMAILNET Lots of news affeccting your schools and communities

6-22-07 EMAILNET State Budget Passes last night

6-14-07 GSCS FYI EMAILNET State Budge FY08 Revisions to State Budget filed today

6-13-07 GSCS EMAILNET

5-18-07 EMAILNET School Funding Formula Needed Now

3-30-07 EMAILNET

3-21-07 EMAILNET

3-6-07 EMAILNET State Budget hearings, State Aid, Grassroots activities

2-22-07 GSCS EMAILNET re Gov's Budget Message

2-20-07 EMAILNET FYI - AMID joins GSCS

2-12-07 EMAILNET SCHOOL AID & PROPERTY TAX HELP NEEDED NOW

2-9-07 GSCS EMAILNET MEMBER FYI on Trenton legislation Action

1-26-07 EMAILNET TRENTON UPDATE: A4 CORE Plan on Assembly Agenda Monday; A1 The 4% Tax Cap bill not yet introduced but still possible for Assembly agenda 1-29 also

1-19-07 EMAILNET

1-2 & 3-07 EMAILNET GSCS Resolution, Fast Track Property Tax bills

12-15-06 EMAILNET Bills Held!

11-14-06GSCS FYI EMAILNET - Spec Session Jt Comm Reports due out 11-15-06

11-11-06 EMAILNET Special Session Legislative Committees report Nov. 14 or 15

11-7-06 EMAILNET Special Education Categorical aid at risk and more

10-21-06 EMAILNET Spec Session, press conference, GSCS board mtg inAtl. City

10-5-06 EMAILNET

9-22-06 EMAILNET

9-20-06 EMAILNET Special Session news & testimonies

9-15-06 EMAILNET Special Session; School Construction Report Released

9-7-06 EMAILNET Special Session & Trenton Update

8-31-06 EMAILNET re Sept 5 Jt Comm on Pub Schl Funding mtg

7-21-06 GSCS QUICKNET

8-24-06 EMAILNET Special Session Update

8-18-06 EMAILNET

8-2-06 EMAILNET Special Session fyi, more

7-28-06 GSCS 'QUICKNET' direct from Trenton

7-28-06 GSCS 'QUICKNET' from Trenton on Special Session

7-27-06 GSCS 'QUICKNET' Property Tax Session info

7-14-06 EMAILNET

7-11-06 EMAILNET FYI

7-7-06 EMAILNET - AGREEMENT ON STATE BUDGET REACHED, impt 'details' still being finalized

6-29-06 GSCS 'QUICKNET FYI' Update on State Budget for FY 2007

6-22-06 EMAILNET on the Homepage today

6-12-06 EMAILNET - Extraordinary Special Education student aid; FY07 Budget 'crunch' is on; news clips

6-6-06 EMAILNET On the Homepage today

6-2-06 EMAILNET

5-16-06 EMAILNET Action in Trenton

5-10-06 EMAILNET

5-5-06 EMAILNET

4-26-06 EMAILNET Member Question 6-8 Rally

4-24-06 EMAILNET

4-17-06 EMAILNET

4-11-06 EMAILNET FYI Hompage...your help requested

3-29-06 EMAILNET State Budget FY07 Hearings Update

3-24-06 EMAILNET FYI Update on Gov Corzine's Budget FY07

3-23-06 EMAILNET Corzine says some Abbotts can raise taxes

3-22-06 EMAILNET Governor Corzine's Budget Message

3-10-06 EMAILNET On the Homepage Today

3-9-06 EMAILNETto South Jersey districts

3-7-06 Articles on Gov's Budget Summit and School Board members off to Trenton

3-7-06 EMAILNET S1701 Call to Action at Gov Corzine Public Hearing

3-3-06 EMAILNET Budget discussions begin in earnest

3-3-06 EMAILNET Budget Discussions begin in earnest

3-1-06 EMAILNET State Budget FY07, Health Benefits

2-1-06 EMAILNET GSCS Advocacy FY07 Budget; On the Homepage Today

1-19-06 EMAILNET Quick Facts, On the Homepage Today

1-5-06 EMAILNET Revised: Quick Facts, State Board Legal Committee school funding decision, legislative update

12-16-05 EMAILNET

12-12-05 EMAILNET Bills move out of Assembly Education Committee

12-3-05 EMAILNET Heads Up!

11-28-05 S1701 EMAILNET Alert

11-15-05 EMAILNET

11-10-05 [REISSUE] EMAILNET Update on S1701

11-8-05 EMAILNET You are invited to December 7 Symposium on School Funding

11-1-05 EMAILNET More information on Gubernatorial Candidates

10-28-05 EMAILNET S1701 resignation, Gubernatorial election information

10-20-14 EMAILNET At the top of the GSCS Home Page Today

10-14-05 EMAILNET Parent question for Gubernatorial Candidates aired on 101.5 debate, SCC funds, Next Board meeting, press briefing notes

9-29-05 EMAILNET School Construction Issues

9-23-05 EMAILNET Follow Up Parents in Trenton Press Conference

8-30-05 EMAILNET Invitation to Parents in Trenton Press Conference

9-9-05 EMAILNET

7-29-05 EMAILNET

7-14-05 EMAILNET School Aid Inequity & S1701 amendments update

7-8-05 EMAILNET GSCS Take on the Assembly Passing of A3680Cryan, an S1701 amendment bill

6-29-05 EMAILNET re State Budget FY06

EMAILNET 6-24-05 GSCS Positions: State Budget FY06 Issues Need Resolving

EMAILNET 6-10-05 SchoolConstruction Heads Up

Read Parent Call to Action Letter

6-17-05 EMAILNET [2] School Construction continued

6-17-05 EMAILNET FY06 Budget & Advocay Update, Quick Facts

EMAILNET 6-10-05 School Construction Funding Heads Up!

EMAILNET 6-8-05 Annual Meeting Advocacy - FY06 info - Quick Facts - more

Star Ledger June 3 2005

Associated Press on Annual Meeting, 6-4-05: In the Homestretch Candidates Talk Education Issues

GSCS 14th Annual Breakfast Meeting 6-3-05 AGENDA

EMAILNET 5-27-05FY06 Legislator Budget Question; A451 State Health Benefits Plan Waiver for Dual Spouse Coverage GSCS Supports ....

5-18-2005

5-6-05 EMAILNET Rumson S1701 Meeting; Legislative News...More

4-21-05 Annual Breakfast Meeting June 3 Sign Up

Emailnet 4-14-05

4-14-05 EMAILNET

4-8-2005

3-29-2005

3-24-2005

3-11-2005

3-1-2005

2-21-2005

2-7-2005

1-27-2005

1-26-2005

1-24-2005

1-14-2005

1-9-2005

1-5-2005

11-30-2004

11-19-2004

11-12-2004

10-29-2004

10-26-2004

10-15-2004

10-14-2004

10-5-2004

9-30-04

9-7-04

8-30-04

8-06-04

7-08-04

6-29-2004

2003-2004 School Year Archive

2002-2003 School Year Archive

11-9-09 GSCS Email-Net: Request to Trustee Districts

Subject: Request for GSCS Trustee Districts

Garden State Coalition of Schools . . .

advocating public support of public education
for all children

GSCS Trustee Dispatch

In This Issue

Looking for Member Input

Tell Us
Your Concerns

The GSCS message is stronger when we have your input.

Please email us at gscs2000@gmail.com
to share your concerns regarding state policies that impact on education and financial issues.

Link to GSCS
to learn the latest post-election news

www.gscschools.org

November 9, 2009

Dear GSCS Trustee Members

At the end of last week you received an Email-Net from the Garden State Coalition inviting you to send us your recommendations on mandate relief for GSCS to forward to the Christie planning team. To get you thinking about this important topic, I'm sharing the beginning of that list of mandates below.

Over the years GSCS has pushed hard for mandate relief. At GSCS' September 30 Trustee Board meeting, our organization was invited to submit our recommendations and ideas to the Christie team, and we want to take advantage of that invitation-quickly! Planning by the Governor-Elect's team is already taking place.

Input from our Trustee Districts is vital to making our effort a success. If possible, we would like to submit our recommendations by the end of this week. Of course, we will continue to accept your suggestions beyond that date, but we must move ahead promptly. Please let us hear from you by sending your suggestions to gscs2000@gmail.com.

Thanks!
Lynne Strickland
GSCS Executive Director

A GSCS "Quick List" of Troublesome Mandates

Here's what some GSCS members have suggested so far. Can you add to the list?

1. Re-exam the Treasurer of School Monies position

An excerpt from the 2004 Mandate Relief Commission report underscores the issue:
This area generally concerns recordkeeping and application and reporting requirements relating to school finances and facilities. Some of the items the Commission considered are redundant to other requirements in the law. Other requirements call for a level of detailed reporting inappropriate to the goal or project in question. The Commission recommended that the Legislature amend the statutes set forth below.

Mandate Considered: Eliminate the custodian/treasurer of school monies and reassign the duties to the Board Secretary, N.J.S.A. 18A:8-33, N.J.S.A. 18A: 13-14
Commission Recommendation and Rationale: This is an anachronistic position predating GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) accounting that served as a check on the Board Secretary. There is no longer a need for this position for which, according to information obtained from the New Jersey School Business Officials, districts pay between $2,500 and $12,000 per year. Potential annual statewide savings could be as much as $3.6 million, as calculated by multiplying the number of school districts times the average reported salary.

2. Prevailing wages requirements-specifically those impacting local community member donations of time and materials

This mandate has been a repeated concern of GSCS members over the last few years, as explained in this member quote:
"If a parent or booster group wants to donate something to the district-something as simple as a new snack shack at the athletic complex-the donor must pay prevailing (union) wages if any money changes hands. This makes it very difficult for us to have generous parents who may be contractors-albeit non-union contractors-donate to the disrict the time and services of their work force. This requirement applies for items valued down to $2,000. The preference would be to get rid of this altogether on anything being donated to the district, but at least it should not apply to things valued under $30,000."

3. Nonpublic services

An excerpt from the 2004 Mandate Relief Commission report underscores the need to consolidate administration of the coordination of these services at the county level:
Mandate Considered: Nonpublic school services: Administration of services to nonpublic school students-such as transportation, technology, nursing and nursing services-are administered on a district-by-district basis. In situations exclusively relating to reimbursement, this often means that a number of different districts will be sending pass-through funding to the same school. The Commission strongly recommends exploring the possibility of centralizing administration of nonpublic services on a countywide or regional basis.

Additional Items

The requirements listed below at first reading may not be considered as "Mandates," but each is required of NJ school districts, and each has been imposed since 2001 when the implementation of CEIFA ceased. While each requirement may be worthwhile when considered separately, they each require staff time and district resources to meet or fulfill. Taken collectively, they mpact on local education costs and the level of administrative staffing needed, an area in which every district is closely scrutinized. The list is not complete, but gives a sampling of such requirements.

4. "Burden of Proof" legislation

This legislation requires the school district to prove its program decisions meet the child's needs whenever a family brings a complaint It changes the US Supreme Court decision that gave this responsibility to the family bringing the complaint.

5. Gang training

The training is required for all administrators-even those in the lower grades of elementary school-and in all communities, even those without gang issues.

6. Technology plan

The state's technology plan requires the support for technology and the purchase of equipment that many districts cannot financially meet without state help. For example, districts will soon be expected to provide a computer for every four students.

7. Full-day preschool and kindergarten

Not every district has full-day kindergarten. Those without cannot provide the cost of facilities and staff to start. Even if state aid helps districts start full-day preschool programs, in those districts that do not also have full-day kindergarten, how can students attending full-day preschool be expected to move to a half-day kindergarten program the next year?

8. Continuous training for all Board of Education members, regardless of their level of expertise or years of experience

The paperwork and record keeping involved whenever staff or Board members attend any workshop or meeting paid for by the disrict, even when required by the state, imposes cost and staff time on the district.

9. Return the special education requirement for grouping children to a four-year age span, not a three-year age span

10. Allow school districts owning their own buses to compete with private carriers for special education runs

Currently, in order to form a "jointure," districts must each have children going to the same out-of-district school. But the legislation creating this situation limits viable alternatives for cost-effective public school transportation.

For example, one district owns its buses and has its own drivers. A neighboring district asks that district to transport a student to a private placement in another town. The district asking for help had been quoted $52,000 by X-Bus Co. to transport their one special-needs child to that private facility. The neighboring district has an available bus and driver and could cover the run for $18,000. But by law districts are not allowed to compete with private bus companies unless the requesting district also has a student going to the same private school as the district with the bus. Only then can the two districts form a jointure. Without the jointure, the district with need of transportation will have to pay $52,000 to X-Bus Co instead of saving $34,000.

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