FYI
GARDEN STATE COALITION OF SCHOOLS/GSCS

Dr. Walter Mahler, President Lynne Strickland, Executive Director Betsy Ginsburg, Parent Network Representative/GSP

Phone 609 394 2828 Fax 609 396 7620 Website ‘gscschools.org’ email ‘gscs@ebnet.org’

I hope that all of you are launched successfully into the new school year. There is a lot to report, as GSCS advocacy efforts have been going forward all summer.
Beginning today, the TGIF will be renamed "FYI". This way we are not tied to a Friday delivery date that doesn't always make sense. The content will remain the same.
Remember that one of our goals is to expand our outreach to parents and interested community members in your districts. If you have e-mail addresses to add to the list, send them here.
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Working Group Members Meet
With Kathleen Crotty
A delegation of GSCS Parent/Board Member working group members joined Lynne Strickland at the Statehouse on Wednesday, September 8, 2004 for a meeting with Kathleen Crotty, Executive Director of the Senate Democratic Office. The meeting lasted nearly two hours and was very productive.
Ms. Crotty was generous with her time and interest. The focus of the session was S1701 and the implications of caps on surplus fund balances and administrative spending. Members of the GSCS group asked about chances for passage of the Baroni bill (repeal of S1701). Ms. Crotty said that she did not think chances of passage were very likely, as legislators do not usually reverse themselves so soon after a measure is passed. The GSCS group then stressed the need for a moratorium on the provisions of the bill that have not become effective yet, so that everyone concerned—legislators, DOE personnel, county and district superintendents--can assess the impact and provide constructive feedback.
Group members provided handouts on the consequences of the caps in districts such as Cherry Hill, Scotch Plains/Fanwood and Glen Ridge. While each district will be affected in slightly different ways, the outcome will be the same for all. Dangerously low surplus fund balances mean that when emergencies happen districts will often either have to borrow (and burden taxpayers with interest payments) or cut personnel or programs.
There was much discussion on GSCS’ call for “tools for schools”—what the legislature could do to help schools with the factors that really drive spending increases—benefit costs, labor settlements, etc. Ms. Crotty said that while the idea of regionalization is mentioned often, it is not likely to become a reality. Legislators, she said, are investigating ways to encourage districts to regionalize shared services and purchasing. Group members mentioned that most districts have already investigated or initiated shared service or purchasing agreements, and that where such opportunities remain there are usually legal impediments to making them a reality.
Ms. Crotty was open to the idea of further discussions. The group proposed the idea of key legislators and their staffers meeting with a small work group of GSCS to hear their views and specific suggestions on ways that the legislators can help districts and address the real problems in school funding.
After leaving Ms. Crotty’s office, the GSCS group had a quick debriefing. The conclusion was that we have to get more parents involved in these advocacy efforts, as legislators are most impressed by loud noise at the grass roots level. In addition to growing the GSCS contact/activity list and large attendance at our grassroots general meetings this year, Lynne encouraged group members to find parents willing to come to Trenton on designated days when the legislature is in session so that legislators and staffers will see a variety of GSCS faces.
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Garden State Coalition of Schools
EMAILNET 9-7-04
News Flash!
Repeal of A99/S1701 Made Possible
Standing in front of the Indian Fields Elementary School in South Brunswick, Assemblyman Bill Baroni (14th District/R), made public his intended legislation to repeal A99/S1701 in its entirety.
The Assemblyman dubbed A99/S1701 "bad policy," noting it does nothing to offer a solution for high property taxes. In fact, "it will cause property taxes to rise." Assemblyman Baroni also pointed out that A99/S1701 takes away local control from school communities and that local board members, superintendents and parents know what's best for their schools and do not want Trenton to tell them what to do. South Brunswick Board of Education President Bob Long, and Superintendent Scott McCartney ehcoed this sentiment and were enthusiastic in their support of Assemblyman Baroni's legislation.
Baroni, a member of the Assembly Education Committee, said bill will be formally introduced next week.
GSCS Executive Director Lynne Strickland, present at the South Brunswick announcement, stated that Baroni's legislation is on target for those who support quality public education and for those who are concerned about rising property taxes. This legislation, she pointed out, gives the public the opportunity to discuss school funding implications and impact with intelligence, an opportunity that was denied under hastily passed [one week only from public hearing debate to passage] A99/S1701.
Stay tuned.....
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GARDEN STATE COALITION OF SCHOOLS/GSCS
EMAILNET 8-30-04
Dr. Walter Mahler, President Lynne Strickland, Executive Director
Betsy Ginsburg, Parent Network Representative/GSPN

Phone 609 394 2828 Fax 609 396 7620 Website ‘gscschools.org’ email ‘gscs@ebnet.org’
GSCS Quick Facts: Next Board of Trustees Meeting: Tuesday, September 14, 4 p.m., at the East Brunswick Board of Education [723 613 6705]…The survey NJSBA requested districts to fill out is important to the education community’s efforts to curtail the implementation of S1701. If you have not yet completed the survey, please do so.
Real Cost Drivers behind School Budgets are driven by State Policy
S1701/A99 Does not provide ‘Tools for Schools’ to cut costs
S1701/A99 Does Take Away Local Control from Communities
· GSCS will continue to refine its list of ‘tools for schools’ – such health benefits flexibility & cost reduction; special education tuition cost reduction [hold private providers to same budget growth standards as public schools]; increase board negotiating power, etc.
· GSCS will continue to meet with legislators and statehouse staff to press our points.
· GSCS will hold large grassroots meetings this year in late Fall and Winter to press our points and seek to regain home rule.
· GSCS will continue to provide data – see Chart.
GSCS S1701/A99 Work Groups continue to press:
Trenton Meeting with key Democrat and Republican Assembly Legislative Staff…An excerpt for GSCS President Walter Mahler’s “Friday Report” follows:
Members of the Executive Board for the Garden State Coalition of Schools met on 8/26 with the Directors of Policy for the Assembly Minority and Majority. We had lengthy conversations regarding the impact of S1701 on local school districts…..
We were told that NJ School Board’s effort to repeal the law would most likely not be entertained. We proposed a moratorium on aspects of the law that could be the most harmful and were told we would need to supply data to support that action…..
We discussed how the use of surplus will be a short-term gain for taxpayers that could result in higher bills the following year. We shared opinions about bond ratings being impacted by weak (low surpluses) financials and the increased costs for districts that need to borrow money to address emergencies if they draw down their surplus…..
We told them that education was unfairly being singled out as the sole culprit for rising property taxes and that a systemic approach is needed.
We reminded them that Board members and school administrators also want to control property taxes but we must deal with cost drivers that are beyond our sphere of influence. We passed out data from the office of legislative services that shows how County/Municipal taxes increased 7% from 1994-2003 while schools increased 4% for that same period of time. We shared information about what cuts and efficiency efforts have been made over the last 10 years and the cost per pupil figures for our successful districts as opposed to the Abbott districts. We argued that the law has diminished home rule and ignored local elections….
[We were told] Our best chance of making inroads is to hold sessions with our representatives in their home offices and provide them with hard data, as well as sound bites, that they might use with their colleagues..."
GSCS Members are encouraged to meet early and often with their local legislators on S1701, starting as soon as possible. Call GSCS with questions/thoughts so we can assist you in your efforts.
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A Victory for Schools: Council on Local Mandates decides in favor of schools: radon testing law for schools is an unfunded mandate. This decision renders the testing law null and void. Among others, GSCS was amicus in this case brought before the Council by the Monmouth-Ocean Educational Services Commission. The Council disagreed with the State’s primary rationale in 2 significant ways:

1. Importantly, the Council clarified the use of the T&E clause to justify the State’s imposition of an unfunded mandate, noting that the State or Legislature bears the burden of proof.
The Council stated that “when the T & E Education Clause…is invoked to excuse an unfunded mandate, the Legislature either must state explicitly that it is implementing that clause, or the State bears the burden of making a specific, precise, fact-based showing that the unfunded mandate implements the T&E Education Clause within the terms previously defined by the Legislature or the courts.” The Council referred to the Highland Park I case for precedence.

2. The Council also rejected the State’s argument that radon testing applied to both non-governmental as well as governmental entities in the “same or similar circumstances” and thus the radon testing law, N.J.S.A. 18A:20-40 {9/14/00}, could not be an unfunded mandate.
The Council syllabus noted that ‘no similar mandate has been enacted for non-public school buildings…” Regarding the non-governmental/governmental argument put forth by the State, the Council further said that…“The Council rejects Respondents’ construction of N.J.A.S.A. 52:13H-3(b) which, if adopted, could open a loophole potentially large enough to render the entire “state mandate, state pay” principle moot.” This sentiment was expressed in GSCS argument [Excerpt from GSCS memo requesting amicus status: “GSCS also believes that the Attorney General, in arguing specifically that the complainants’ motion should be dismissed based on the combination of non-governmental and governmental entities alike having to comply with this mandate is not in keeping with the intent of the mandate statute. This interpretation could obviate the rationale for the state mandate – state pay legislation altogether for public schools; it also could obstruct the role of the Local Council. If the Attorney General’s motion is permit
ted to stand, future school district mandate arguments would be prejudiced at the onset…”

This decision was positive for schools. It demonstrates the Council’s ability to act with independent, well-balanced judgment. GSCS encourages its members to remember that the Council’s presence in Trenton. For details: http://www.state.nj.us/localmandates/8-20-04monocean.pdf