Quality Public Education for All New Jersey Students

 

 
     6-24-11 Democrat Budget Proposal brings aid to all districts
     4-29-11 BOOMERANG! Near 80 per cent of School Budgets Passed in Wednesday'sSchool Elections
     4-21-11 Supreme Court hears school funding argument
     4-14-11 Governor Releases Legislation to Address Education Reform Package
     4-8-11 Education Issues in the News
     4-7-11 Early news coverage & press releases - Governor's Brooking Inst. presentation on his education reform agenda
     3-25-11 Education Week on School Cutbacks Around The Nation
     2-7-11 Education - and Controversy - in the News
     12-5-10 Sunday News - Education-related Issues
     10-8-10 Education Issue in the News
     9-1-10 Education in the News
     8-27-10 later morning - breaking news: Statehouse Bureau ‘Gov. Chris Christie fires N.J. schools chief Bret Schundler’
     8-27-10 Star Ledger ‘U.S. officials refute Christie on attempt to fix Race to the Top application during presentation’
     8-25-10 Race to the Top articles - the 'day after' news analysis
     8-16-10 Senate Education hears 'for discussion only' comments re expanding charter school authorization process; Commissioner Schundler relays education priorities to the Committee
     8-13-10 East Brunswick Public School seeks stay on Hatikvah Charter School opening this fall (re: Hatikvah not meeting minimum enrollment requirement)
     7-3-10 Governor Christie and Legislative leaders reached agreement today on a 2% property tax cap with 4 major exemptions
     7-1 and 2- 10 Governor Christie convened the Legislature to address property tax reform
     GSCS On the Scene in Trenton: State Budget poised to pass late Monday...Cap Proposals, Opportunity Scholarship Act in Limbo
     6-28-10 State Budget tops the news today
     GSCS On the Scene in Trenton: Cap Proposals, Opportunity Scholarship Act in Limbo
     6-23-10 Trenton News: State Budget on the move...Education Issues
     6-11-10 In the News: State Budget moving ahead on schedule
     6-10-10 Op-Ed in Trenton Times Sunday June 6 2010
     6-8-10 Education issues in the news today - including 'hold' on pension reform, round two
     6-8-10 (posted) Education & Related Issues in the News
     6-4-10 Education News
     4-23-10 Education issues remain headline news
     4-22-10 School Elections - in the News Today
     4-6-10 'Gov. Chris Chrisite extends dealdine for teacher salary concessions'
     4-6-10 'NJ school layoffs, program cuts boost attention to Apri 20 votes
     4-2-10 Press of Atlantic City lists county impact re: school aid reduction
     4-2-10 'On Titanic, NJEA isn't King of the World'
     4-1-10 Courier Post article reports on Burlington and Camden County district budgets
     4-1-10 Education in the News today
     4-1-10 New Initiatives outlined to encourage wage freezes - reaction
     3-30-10 Race to the Top winners helped by local buy-in
     3-29-10 The Record and Asbury Park Press - Editorials
     3-26-10 School Aid, Budget Shortfall - Impt Related Issues = Front Page News
     3-23-10 ' N.J. Gov. Chris Christie signs pension, benefits changes for state employees'
     3-23-10 State Budget Issues in the News
     3-17-10 Budget News - Gov. Chris Christie proposes sacrifices
     3-17-10 Budget News - NJ Schools Stunned By Cuts
     3-14-10 'Christie will propose constitutional amendment to cap tax hikes in N.J. budget'
     3-4-10 'School aid cuts unavoidable during NJ budget crisis'
     3-3-10 'Public Education in N.J.: Acting NJ Comm of Educ Bret Schundler says 'Opportunity'
     2-26-10 'NJ average property taxes grow 3.3 percent to an average of $7,300'
     2-24-10 'Tight funds raise class sizes that districts long sought to cut'
     2-22-10 Christie and unions poised to do batttle over budget cuts'
     2-19-10 'Acting NJ education commissioner hoping other savings can ward off cuts'
     2-22-10 Trenton Active Today
     2-16-10 'Christie Adopts Corzine Cuts, Then Some'
     1-29-10 Schools in the News
     1-20-10 'N.J. files application for federal Race to the Top education money'
     1-20-10 Editorials, Commentary on New Governor in Trenton
     1-15-10 Education News-Race to the Top incentives, NCLB annual results, supermajority vote upheld
     1-14-10 'N.J. Gov.-elect Christie targets teachers' union with Schundler appointment'
     1-14-10 'To lead schools, Christie picks voucher advocate'
     1-13-10 More articles, plus Wikipedia information re New Education Commissioner, Bret Schundler
     1-13-10 More articles + Wikipedia information re New Education Commissioner, Bret Schundler
     1-13-10 Christie Press Conference reports
     1-12-10 Change in Trenton
     1-6-10 Race to the Top Plans on the move, not without conflict
     12-23-09 Press of Atlantic City - 'Corzine forms panel to aid nonpublic schools'
     1-5-10 News articles re: lame duck
     1-4-10 'Last Call for Lame Ducks in Trenton'
     1-5-10 Update on January 4 Lame Duck Session
     12-28-09 Education Week 'Race to Top' Driving Policy Action Across States
     12-27-09 'New Jersey competes for education reform stimulus money' (aka 'Race to the Top' funds)
     12-20-09 Education in the News
     12-12 & 13-09 Education Issues in the News
     11-29-09 Ramifications - News of NJ's fiscal realities
     11-20-09 'Christie lays down his law for state'
     11-13-09 Education Week on: Gov-elect Christie's Education Agenda; Race to the Top Funds Rules
     11-12-09 Governor-elect Christie names his 10 member transition team
     11-11-09 'Oliver ready for Nov.23 leadership vote, wants up or down vote on marriage equality'
     11-11-09 Christie mum on fiscal emergency declaration
     11-9-09 Edcuation in the News
     11-8-09 News of Note
     11-6-09 News of Note
     11-5-09 Day After the Election News
     11-3-09 ELECTION DAY IS TODAY - SHOW UP AND VOTE FOR THE CANDIDATES OF YOUR CHOICE
     11-2-09 NY Times NJ Governors' race update
     11-4-09 Record low turnout elects Chris Chrisite NJ's Governor
     11-3-09 'Chris Christie wins N.J. governor race'
     11-1-09 Education News of Note
     Education Week on Federal Stimulus Funding Issues
     10-26-09 'High school sports spending grows as budgets get tighter inNew Jersey'
     10-22-09 News of Note
     10-20-09 News of Note
     10-19-09 Education Week 'States felling fiscal pain despite the stimulus'
     10-14-09 'Meetings are just the tip of the iceberg'
     10-7 & 9-09 Gubernatorial Campaign news: Candidates on education; Corzine on next year's state budget
     10-5-09 Gannett: Editorial & Recommendations re: Gubernatorial Campaign Issues '09
     10-4-09 NY Times 'As Property Taxes Become a Real Burden'
     10-2-09 News of Note
     10-1-09 Education Week on Acheivement Gap narrowing; Algebra Testing
     9-30-09 'Attack ads give way to issues as campaign enters final phase'
     9-30-09 Results of School Construction bond referenda rolling in
     9-27-09 Education News of Note
     9-23-09 'Tests changing for special ed students'
     9-16-09 Courier News Editorial
     9-9-09 News of Note
     9-13-09 As an issue for N.J.(Gubernatorial election), schools are in'
     9-3 & 4-09 News of Note
     8-20-09 'Nearly all NJ teachers are highly qualified'
     8-10-09 News of Note
     8-7-09 'Bill would strengthen teacher tenure rights'
     8-4-09 Recent NJ Education News of Note
     7-22-09 'State gives extra aid for schools an extraordinary boost'
     7-16-08 Schools Testing measures adopted; Test scoring upgraded - harder to pass
     7-14-09 Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial
     7-1-09 What's the Buzz: News of Note
     4-23-09 The public shows its support for public education in passing nearly 75 per cent of school budgets statewide
     4-17-09 The $609M Federal Stimulus aid to NJ - initial reactions
     4-19 and 20-09 Editorial and School Elections articles
     3-29-09 Record Editorial on Judge Doyne recommendations
     3-10-09 GOVERNOR TO DELIVER STATE BUDGET MESSAGE TODAY - SCHOOL AID FIGURES TO BE RELEASED BY THURSDAY LATEST
     1-11-09 'Corzine State of State speech to put economy front & center'
     12-28-08 NY Times 'Pension Fight Signals What Lies Ahead'
     12-29-08 NJ to new leaders - Fund our schools
     11-19-08 'Too soon to scrap Abbott'
     11-24-08 Editorial asks for preschool initiative slow down
     11-23-08 State lacks financial incentives to sell concept of school mergers
     9-24-08 Editorials re High School Redesign issues
     9-24-08 Commissioner of Education at Assembly Education Committee yesterday
     9-24-08 Supreme Court hearing on constitutionality of School Funding Reform Act
     8-29-08 'Newly hired teachers benefit from Corzine delay'
     8-26-08 What's the Buzz...
     News on the Issues - Stay Informed
     8-15-08 'Superintendents sue education commissioner'
     8-14-07 In the news today
     7-28 &29- 08 Fuel cost crisis impacting school budgets across the nation
     6-13-08 News on Education Committee actions yesterday in Trenton
     6-10-08 NJ lawmakers work on $33B spending plan Tuesday
     6-9-08 GSCS Quick Facts: TRENTON FOCUS THIS WEEK
     6-4-08 In the News
     5-21-08 News Articles & editorial
     4-30-08 'Loophole on town mergers targeted
     4-18 & 4-21-08 RECENT LEGISLATIVE PROPOSALS: 3 MAJOR POLICY CHANGES PROMOTED BY ASSEMBLY SPEAKER ROBERTS
     NEWS EDITORIALS Star Ledger 4-19 & 4-20 Ammo for Abbott Foes & Spending but with Restraint
     Recent news articles of note re: probable 'lame duck ' legislative session issues - to be or not to be- and controversial school construction report
     10-23 Media reports & Trenton responses to date re GSCS Press Conf
     In the news - Corzine on school aid formula & good news for urban schools
     9-13-07Corzine adds school aid to the lame-duck agenda
     Back to School News of Note
     8-10-07 'Standing 'O' greets Corzine as he hosts town hall mtg'
     8-8-07 Editorial 'School [construction] program needs more than a facelift'
     8-2-07 Editorial 'Reliance on property taxes must be fixed'
     8-1-07 'Paterson isn't ready to gain control' & 7-29 'The Numbers still don't add up'
     7-27-07 Retiree health costs 'time bomb'
     7-26-07 'State's tab for retirees' health care is $58B'
     7-25-07 Debate over School Tests
     7-25-07 NY Times '2 NJ school districts regain some local control'
     6-29-07 Lots of news affecting NJ, its schools and communities this week - STATE BUDGET signed - LIST OF LINE ITEM VETOES - US SUPREME CT RULING impacts school desgregation - SPECIAL EDUCATION GROUPS file suit against state
     5-21-07 In Connecticut '2 School Aid Plans Have a Similar Theme'
     5-16-07 Education Week 'Frustration Builds in NJ Funding Debate'
     5-15-07 Grad students tackle school funding issues
     4-18-07 School Budget Vote passed statewide at 78% rate - GSCS take: state aid increases a factored in offsetting property tax increases, thus boosting passing rate by 24.6%, up from last year's passing rate of 53.4%
     4-4-07 News articles, editorial & Op-Ed on bill signings for A1 and A4
     4-4-07 N Y Times, front page 'NJ Pension Fund Endangered by Diverted Billions'
     3-25-07 New York Times on NJ Comparative Spending Guide, more on Gov putting off signing A1, Tax Caps & Rebate bill
     3-16-07 News articles
     3-15-07 State eases at risk aid restrictions & 25% members of NJ Senate retiring (so far)
     3-12-07 This article tells you why you cannot get easy access to legislator votes on-line
     3-8-07 'Education Chief Revamps Department'
     3-1-07 Op Ed piece re 'Super' Superintendent in the CORE Plan
     3-1-07 Emerging Devil showing up in the details
     2-23-07 News Articles re Gov's Budget Proposal
     2-22-07 Gov's Budget Message Link & Related News Articles
     2-22-07 News articles re Governor's Budget Message this morning
     2-21-07 Associated Press 'Codey Affirms More State Aid'
     2-16 to 2-19 News Articles of Note
     2-20-07 Live from the Ledger on-line
     2-21-07 Associated Press - Codey Affrims More School Aid
     2-16 to 2-19 New Articles of Note
     2-15-07 'Parents get boost on special ed rights' Star Ledger
     2-12-07 State School Aid - needed to offset property taxes now
     2-8-07 Editorial - ' Progress, Trenton style'
     2-1-07 Turnpike for sale, Gov - need funding formula, more
     1-23-07 Tax Reform in Trenton?
     1-9-07 Countywide Pilot Program and County 'Super' Superintendent bills held again yesterday, Jan 22 next probable vote date scheduled for these bills
     1-8-07 Articles & Editorial talk about 'missing pieces' of tax reform proposal and note consequences
     1-5-07 Small-town officials protest consolidation
     1-4-07 Gov Corzine & legislative leaders agree on 4% hard cap tied to sliding scale rebates (20% max on down)
     1-3-07 GSCS Member ALERT 'County School bills' fastracked again
     12-19-06 Feedback - articles on school funding heaings yesterday
     12-18-06 Sunday editorials - take of Property Tax session
     12-14-06 Trenton News articles
     11-15-06 The Special Session Jt Committee Reports
     11-19-06 Sunday Press Articles & Commentaries
     11-16-06 Property Tax Proposal news articles
     11-14-06 Direction of Special Session Report Recommendations starting to leak into press articles
     11-13-06 Schools, property taxes fuel debates
     11-11-06 New school funding plan could add $1 billion in aid
     11-10-06 NJ education chief vows urban support
     11-4-06 Senate President & Assembly Speaker 'no new taxes'
     11-1-06 Gannett 'Halved property tax called unrealistic'
     10-31-06 The Record - Property Tax Cut Debated
     10-30-06 NY Times
     10-21-06 Education Data Study Released - how the news is being reported
     10-20-06 Education - study data released
     10-5-06 Conversation on school funding, consolidation continues
     9-25-06 Savings Little -Costs at merged schools similar
     9-20-06 Coverage of the benefits & School Funding Jt Comm hearings 9-19-06
     9-18-06 News Articles re Special Session
     9-15-06 Star Ledger - 3.25B suggested for school construction
     9-7-06 The Record Local Govts Poised to save as co-pays rise
     9-7-06 News re Jt Comm on Consolidation & Shared Services mtg 9-5
     9-6-06 Articles re Jt Comm Hearing yesterday & related school news
     9-4-06 Weekend news articles of note
     8-29-06 School Funding to be reviewed today
     8-29-06 Assoc Press - School Funding to be reviewd today
     8-29-06 Hopewell Valley article re - courtesy busing withdrawal
     8-26-06 'N.J.'s best schools in wealthiest, northern towns'
     8-23-06 Crowd assails changes to state health plan
     8-23-06 Live from the Ledger on-line
     8-20-06 AP 'Property Tax reform bid to shift to overdrive'
     8-22-06 Star Ledger Column & NY Times Editorial
     8-14-06 News Clips
     8-9-06 Special Session Jt Comm on Consolidation of Govt Services meeting 8-8-06
     8-9-06 article re today's Jt Comm on Public Employee Benfits Reform
     8-8-06 NY Times Public Pension Plans Face Billions in Shortage
     7-25-06 Associated Press Prop Tax Q & A
     7-18-06 Live from the Ledger
     7-16-06 (thru 7-21-06) Bergen Record series investigate cost of NJ public services & property tax link
     7-16-06 Bergen Record series investigate cost of NJ public services & property tax link
     7-12-06 Column on State Budget legislator items
     7-12-06 Statehouse starts talking specifics about property tax reform
     7-13-06 Articles - Property tax issues, teacher salaries, voucher suit filing
     6-30-06 State Budget news - as the dissonance must be resolved
     6-29-06 Mirroring the elements, State Budget looking like a 'natural disaster'
     6-25-06 State Budget issues: legislative branches conflict - news articles
     6-21-06 Star Ledger - Washington DC Bureau re graduation rates & quality education
     6-20-06 News articles re State Budget FY07
     6-15-06 Star Ledger, Gannet articles- Abbott advocates demand school reform at educ. dept
     6-14-06 Assembly Minority Budget Leader Joe Malone's Op Ed
     Editorial on benefit of using UEZ surplus for spec educ aid for this year
     6-12-06 News Clips
     Weekend News Clips re Property Tax & School Funding issues
     6-9-06 Star Ledger ' Salary review bill hits roadblock'
     6-7-06 News Articles re Leg Summer Session work on Property Taxes
     6-6-06 Star Ledger re Special Summer Session
     6-5-06 Editorials on school funding & State Budget articles
     6-1-06 Star Ledger Thursday article on GSCS Annl Mtg
     5-30-06 News Articles
     5-21-06 Sunday Courier Post on Schools' hiring
     5-23-06 News Articles
     5-23-06 AP 'Codey to propose school ballott change'
     5-14-06N Y Times 'For school budgets the new word is NO'
     5-17-06 Trenton Times - School Aid, budget dominate forum
     5-16-06 News fromTrenton
     5-10-06 A Lot is going on - Major News fromTrenton
     News articles re even less state revenue & SCI scapegoating
     5-5-06 News articles Gannett and Courier Post
     One example of schools consolidating services
     4-16-06 Courier Post
     4-16-06 Star Ledger editorial & article re Gov v. Abbott from 4-15-06
     4-16-06 Sunday NY Times Metro Section, front page
     40-16-06 Gannett & Asbury Park Press on School Budget election issues
     4-13-06 'Budget cap puts NJ schools on edge'
     4-7-07 The Record
     3-31-06 AP 'Budget idea puts onus on income taxes, businesses'
     3-28-06 NY Times re Texas school finance case
     3-25-06 Press of Atlantic City
     3-29-06 News Articles on State Budget testimony before the Assembly Budget Comm. yesterday in Collingswood
     3-29-06 News Articles on State Budget testimony in Collingswood 3-28-06
     3-10-06 Star Ledger 'Time is ripe for poorer districts to contribute.
     3-22-06 News Article sampling on Governor's Proposed FY07 Budget
     3-19-06 Millville, Vineland may lose Abbott status
     3-19-06 Sunday News Articles on State Budget
     3-15-06 News articles on FY07
     3-15-06 NY Times 'Crisis at School Agency Reflects Missteps'
     3-10-06 News articles GSCS related issues
     3-7-06 More articles on the Gov's Budget Summit and School Board members fo to Trenton
     2-14-06 TrentonTimes Letter to the Editor on school construction
     2-11-06 Trenton Timesn'NJ State Budget has little wiggle room'
     2-9-06 Star Ledger School agency reformers discuss goals, problems
     2-10-06 Star Ledger editorial re void of credible & useful data at Department of Education
     FUNDING HISTORY - May 27 1998 - Education Week article re Abbott V - funding above parity
     1-26-06 New York Times article re public schools fundraising for private support
     1-25-06 Star Ledger 'School District's Woes Point to Rising Tax Resistance'
     1-24-06 Asbury Park Press 'Funding sparks heated debate'
     1-15-06 Sunday Star Ledger front page on Property Taxes
     1-12-06 Star Ledger 'Lawmaker pushes tax relief plan'
     1-12-06StarLedger 'Lawmaker pushes his tax relief plan'
     1-11-06 Star Ledger - Corzine Casts Wide Net for Cabinet
     1-6 thru 1-9-06 articles on Lameduck session and School Construction
     1-5-06 Monmouth county article on S1701 ramifications,examples - hitting hard at home
     1-1-06 Press of Atlantic City
     12-30-05 School Construction and Education Funding news clips
     12-20-05 Star Ledger on NJ Supreme Court decision on stalled school construction
     12-20-05 Star Ledger 'Schools lower the heat and risk a backlash'
     12-20-05 Star Ledger
     12-20-05 The Record 'Where Will the Bills End?' NJ Supreme Court releases its opinion on stalled school construction program.
     12-14-05 Asbury ParkPress Editorial 'Re-assess the ABC's of School Funding' notes the Governor's role is critical to make positive change
     12-16-05 Star Ledger Schools may end courtesy busing, tied to S1701 budget stressors
     12-16-05 News articles of note
     Trenton Times 6-25-05 State Budget FY06 and Democrat Tensions
     Activists Hope to Revive School Funding Issue
     12-15-05 Star Ledger School bond plans get resounding 'no'
     Time Magazine
     12-10-05 Star Ledger Schools might get heating help as bill gains on spending caps
     On Star Ledger
     12-8-05 Asbury Park Press Mom takes up the torch for school funding
     12-5-05 Governor-elect Corzine selects policy advisory groups
     11-28-05 Star Ledger 'It's Lame-duck time in Trenton'
     11-20-05 Sunday Star Ledger 'Corzine's risky promise to taxpayers
     The Record 11-18-05 Corzine's tax fix to mean 'pain'
     11-17-05 Trenton Times 'Education Chief announces testing overhaul'
     11-15-05 N Y Times article
     11-13-05 Star Ledger Sunday front page 'Blueprint for 6 Billion Dollar Boondagle
     11-14-05 The Record Herb Jackson on Whitman experience a lesson for Corzine
     11-11-05 Trenton Times Corzine puts property taxes at the top of his agenda
     11-9-05 The Record - Governor Elect can't claim a mandate
     Assoc. Press NJ 6-10-05 Codey Brokering Deal on Tax Convention
     Gubernatorial Candidates' Education Plans announced September 05
     November 9 The Trenton Times - Corzine Triumphs
     November 7 YOUR VOTE TOMORROW COUNTS ... Some news articles worth reading
     11-4-05 Star Ledger State Board of Education calls for revamping school funding
     10-23-05 Sunda Star Ledger article on how property taxes work
     10-4-05 Trenton Times NJ may replenish school building fund.
     10-16-05 Sunday Star Ledger & Gannet news articles on gubernatorial candidates take on important issues related to public education issues
     10-19-05 Courier Post-Gannett article on Gubernatorial Debate
     Groups Seek Attention from Candidates 10-12-05
     10-6-05 and 10-12-05 Forrester v. Corzine, Corzine v. Forrester articles
     10-4-05 Trenton Times School Construction fund may be replenished
     9-29-05 Star Ledger 'NJ in hole for $53M after vote on school funds promised for construction
     9-26-05 Star Ledger School Construction Making the Grade is Now Up to the Voters
     9-22-05 Some news articles on the press conference - Gannett and Star Ledger
     9-23-05 Star Ledger School Construction on next Tuesday's bond referenda
     9-12-05 Associated Press Rutgers initiates new education institute
     9-9-05 Trenton Times,Corzine Education Agenda
     9-9-05 Asbury Park Press Corzine plans 25M education agenda
     Star Ledger 9-9-05 Soaring gas costs result in towns asking for cap relief
     Star Ledger 8-31-05: Though few, new schools open doors for kids
     8-19-05 Head of School Construction Agency Resigns Abruptly, Compounding Agency Turmoil
     Trenton Times 8-12-05 School funding sought
     Star Ledger Front Page 8-16-02 School districts run for school construction aid
     Herb Jackson Column 7-18-05 Budget 'cuts' more a case of creative math
     Herb Jackson Column 7-18-05 Budget 'cuts' more a case of creative math
     The Record 'get's it' Read Editorial 7-14-05
     Star Ledger 7-13-05 Codey Puts Constitutional Convention on Hole
     The Record7-10-05 Sunday Front Page Must Read
     Star Ledger 7-7-05 Local school officials told state may not provide promised construction funding
     The Record 7-3-05 State Budget Doles Out Money
     The Record 7-4-05 Rebates safe, but tax problem not nearer solution
     The Check it out - Press of Atlantic City 7-6-05 Education Funds lie in Budget Fine Print
     Star Ledger 7-2-05 Late Night Budget Passes
     The Record 7-2-05 State Budget Passes
     Gannet 7-2-05 State Budget and School Aid
     Asbury Park Press 6-28-05 Senate Passes $20M for 5 school districts
     Philadelphia Inquirer 6-30-05 Dueling Budgets Will Miss Deadline
     Asbury Park Press 6-30-05 No Consensus in Trenton on Spending Plan
     Trenton Times 6-30-05 School Construction Review Panel Formed
     Star Ledger 6-30-05 State Budget Finale on Hold
     Star Ledger 6-29-05 Bid to Save Tax Rebates Imperils NJ Budget
     The Record 6-29-05 Tax Plan Quitely Dying
     Trenton Times 6-25-05 State Budget and Democrat Tensions
     Star Ledger 6-17-05 Seniors want tax convention, Senate prefers Special Session
     050618 Press of Atlantic City 'Activists Look to Revisit School Funding Issue
     6-16-05 Philadelphia Inquirer Commission Librera Releases Abbott Designation Report
     Star Ledger 6-4-05 GSCS Annual Meeting Forrester & Schundler
     Assoc. Press NJ 6-10-05 Codey Brokering Deal on Tax Convention
     Star Ledger 6-14-05 Legislators Assail School Building Agency at Hearing
     Star Ledger 6-13-05 Legislators Assail School Construction Corp
     Trenton Times 6-10-05 Rebate Debate on Budget for FY06
     Star Ledger June 3 2005 Advance article, Annual Meeting noted
     Gannet on Annual Meeting 6-4-05 Forrester, Schundler Address School Concerns
     Gannet on Annual Meeting 6-4-05 Candidates Address School Concerns
     Assocated Press, In the Homestrech Forrester and Schundler Talk Education
     Class Sizes Disappoint Glen Ridge Parents
     SCC reforms underway 'Jump Starting the Effort to build New Schools' Star Ledger May26 2005.
     Trenton Times 5-24-05 Codey Plans for Less Pain in Budget
     Preliminary School Election Results from NJ Dept of Education
     Jersey Journal article
     State Health Benefit Plan Star Ledger 4-8-05
     Taxes, ire both on rise
     NJ lawmakers want the state to join education law protest
     Panel Tells of Referenda Woes
     GSCS Parent Leader Molly Emiliani-Livingston & GSCS Director Lynne Strickland present to Pennsylvania Bucks County
     Hopewell valley School Board Approves $63M Budget
     Schools will seek Extra Funding
     Rebate Panic
     Lack of funds amid surplus of concerns
     Enrollment Dip Hurts Special Schools
     Costly School Site Fiasco Spurs Assembly Measure
     Teacher Seeks Family to Fight Abbott Rulings
     Panel OKs Constitutional Convention on Tax Reform
     Jersey Halts New Pacts for School Construction
     Schools Face Enrollment, Aid Dilemma
     Cut is sought in Abbott District Aid
     Local News - Cuts plentiful in NJ budget proposal
     Amid probe, agency to cut school costs
     Acting governor faces tough sledding on deficit
     Parents Give Cody an Earful
     Courier Post Online
     Article Mt Laurel GSCS Summit 2-10-05
     Bill to loosen school budgets altered
     WNBC Interview
     Educators urge parents to fight school spending cap
     Assembly Panel Weighs Plan for a Property Tax Convention
     Tax-reform debate takes sharp turn
     School funding plan gets OK from panel
     Legislature Acts to Revamp School Spending Caps
     Educators to Argue for Repeal of Cap Law
     State must devise tests to comply with No Child Left Behind
3-15-06 News articles on FY07

From the ‘www.gscschools.org’ website 3-15-06

 

Corzine budget plan includes higher taxes

He is expected to meet cash crisis with $2 billion cut in spending, too

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

BY JOE DONOHUE AND JEFF WHELAN

Star-Ledger Staff

Gov. Jon Corzine is planning more than $2 billion in spending cuts, along with major tax increases that could include an additional penny to the sales tax, to balance the next state budget, a top administration official said yesterday.

The cuts include $100 million from higher education and a freeze on state aid for most school districts. That would increase the pressure on municipal officials to raise property taxes and on colleges to raise tuitions.

"You are going to hear the howling near and far," said the official, who is familiar with the budget planning and discussed it on condition of anonymity.

The official said Corzine has not settled on the mix of tax increases but that they will generate less than $2 billion. The source said it is "likely but not definite" they will include sales tax changes.

Four other Democratic sources said the governor, who personally briefed Democratic leaders on the budget Monday, is considering raising the 6 percent sales tax to 7 percent and extending it to some untaxed services. Those two moves alone could net about $1.4 billion.

During a speech in Atlantic City yesterday, Corzine said permanently fixing the state's budget woes will "come with some cost. It's not free. There may be a need for revenue raisers."

Administration officials have estimated the state would spend $4.5 billion more than it brings in during the fiscal year beginning July 1 if spending and revenue continue on their current track.

That projection included $511 million in new state aid for school districts, but the administration source said Corzine's budget will include only a small portion of that -- the source was unable to give the exact figure -- and it will go exclusively to the 31 "special needs" school districts, partly for preschool programs.

Last year, higher education received $2.1 billion, a $156 million increase. This year, colleges and universities will have to rely on tuition increases, surpluses and cuts to make up for a reduction that will exceed $100 million, the official said.

As he readies Tuesday's budget address, the governor also hopes to save about $200 million through layoffs and other personnel actions involving 15,000 non-unionized state workers, the source said. Those moves would include layoffs of about 400 political appointees; salary freezes; a requirement that non-union workers contribute 10 percent of their health insurance premiums (there currently are no co-pays), and possibly some pension changes.

The governor has ruled out similar steps for unionized workers, at least until salary contracts are up for renegotiation next year.

The governor, who held four public meetings on the budget last week, said yesterday the administration will launch an aggressive campaign to win support for his plan.

Richard Codey, as governor last year, considered and rejected raising the sales tax and extending it to services such as video downloads, membership fees for country clubs and installation of flooring and carpeting.

While those ideas are back on the table, another option Corzine is considering is a "surtax," or surcharge on income tax.

"It's pick your poison," said one Democrat aware of the governor's plans.

While Corzine said most options remain under consideration, the Democratic sources said he has abandoned any notion of imposing a New Mexico-style gross receipts tax on services provided by professionals like lawyers, doctors, and engineers. The administration also no longer is considering an extension of the sales tax to those same services.

Such a move would have drawn fierce opposition from the 15,000-member New Jersey State Bar Association. "If in fact that was in the budget, or that became part of the legislation, we absolutely would have gone to war," association president Stuart Hoberman said.

Rutgers University economist James Hughes said a new gross receipts tax on businesses might cause the most pain to the economy, by fostering the impression that "business is being singled out again to solve state budget problems."

An income tax surtax, Hughes said, might be a bad move just two years after the state raised the income tax on the 35,000 taxpayers earning more than $500,000.

Hughes said the sales tax option "may turn out to be the most palatable one." Democratic sources said recent polling has borne that out.

Even at 7 percent, the sales tax would be lower than that in nearby counties of New York, and not so much above Pennsylvania's 6 percent rate to cause a mass shopping exodus, the economist said.

However, Tom Wilson, chairman of the Republican State Committee, said, "Any additional tax increases are likely to put us over the edge and into a long-term economic death spiral."

Assemblyman Louis Greenwald (D-Camden), chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee, said the governor's plan will undergo many changes before its final adoption in June. "There are lots of rumors out there right now, so let's wait and see what is presented March 21," Greenwald said.

Staff writer Josh Margolin contributed to this report. Joe Donohue and Jeff Whelan cover state government and politics. Donohue may be reached at jdonohue@starledger.com or (609) 989-0208. Whelan may be reached at jwhelan@starledger.com or (609) 989-0379.

 

_________________________________________________________

Learning the painful lessons on pensions

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Ronald Larkin is a former school superintendent in New Brunswick who retired to Florida two years ago in grand style.

His pension is $123,000 a year, a generous sum that was inflated by Larkin's scheming and the collusion of the local school board.

"I'm not saying I took the high road," Larkin said from his townhouse in Port St. Lucie. "But this was all reviewed and approved."

True enough. Larkin used all the familiar tricks to pad his pension, and they are perfectly legal.

The idea is to inflate the final salary, which sets pension benefits for life. So Larkin converted fringe benefits to cash. He won big bonuses and raises near the end. He was reimbursed for earlier pension payments. And so on.

It worked like a charm.

"I play golf and tennis and bridge, mostly -- just what I said I'd do when I retired," Larkin says.

If this makes you want to scream, hold on. There may be hope after all.

The big unions representing state workers and teachers now say they are fed up, too. They are planning to push for reform this year.

"Our members don't have the ability to manipulate the system and jack up their salaries at the end of their careers," says Bob Master, regional political director of the Communications Workers of America. "This is a problem that jeopardizes our members' pensions and discredits the whole system."

The all-powerful teachers union is striking the same note.

"This could absolutely not happen with a classroom teacher," says Joyce Powell, president of the New Jersey Education Association. "We want these abuses to be cleaned up. We'll have to study it and figure out ways to do it."

If they mean it, this could be big.

Because these unions scare politicians in Trenton to death. They put out an army of workers on election day, and they contribute lots of money, which means they can kill politicians who mess with them. If they get behind reform, it will happen.

But do the unions really mean it?

It's hard to tell. They are opposed to big changes, like switching to a 401(k) system. And they promise to fight some reasonable reforms that would save big bucks, like moving the retirement age from 55 to 60.

Still, the average public pension in New Jersey is $18,000 a year. These people can't manipulate the system. If they demanded big raises at the end of their career to boost their pensions, they would be sent back to their cubicles with a reprimand.

The unions are starting to realize that they'd better clean the system up if they want to avoid a political backlash. And at a time when the state is supposed to contribute $1.8billion to the ailing pension funds, they don't want a backlash.

They don't have a specific plan yet, but there are plenty of ways to attack the abuses without hurting the little guy.

The state could ban salary padding at the end of a career, as in Larkin's case. It could forbid politicians with two public jobs from taking two pensions. It could end the bogus practice of accumulating pension credits for serving on part-time boards.

Much as they protest, the unions did help create the pension deficit we now face by pushing the Legislature to fatten their benefits. It is entirely fitting that they should help with the clean-up.

Larkin, meanwhile, is wondering why he's the target of such criticism. He only did what everyone else does by negotiating the best package he could.

When he did finally retire, he gave $81,000 -- half of his accumulated sick time -- to a local scholarship fund.

"I don't understand," he says. "What I did was not illegal."

But maybe it should be. And if the unions help, it probably will be.

Tom Moran's column appears Wednesdays and Fridays. He may be reached at tmoran@starleger.com or (973) 392-1823.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

Corzine faces defining moment

Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 03/15/06

We're hoping reports that Gov. Corzine is considering raising an additional $1.5 billion in taxes to balance the state budget is a trial balloon, not an attempt to soften the blow for a decision that has already been made. We will find out when Corzine unveils his 2006-07 budget proposal next week.

Gannett State Bureau Staff Writer Jonathan Tamari reported Tuesday that Corzine and his advisers are considering raising the sales tax from 6 percent to 7 percent, expanding the sales tax to include more goods and services, and placing a surcharge on existing income taxes.

Corzine has repeatedly promised he would raise taxes only if the budget couldn't be balanced with spending cuts. If he and his advisers are contemplating $1.5 billion in tax increases, it's obvious they aren't trying hard enough to find ways to reduce spending. As previous state Treasurer John McCormac often stated, New Jersey has a spending problem, not a revenue problem.

If Corzine does include tax increases in his budget proposal, it will be for one reason: lack of courage. The steps needed to bring spending under control are obvious — reining in the lavish benefits of the public employee unions, imposing deep staffing and payroll cuts in state government, dramatically reducing aid to the Abbott school districts and taking steps to halt spending abuses and inefficiencies in the schools and in local and county government.

Virtually every day, the Press generates stories about how taxpayer money is being squandered by local, county or state public officials. Alongside Tuesday's lead story about Corzine contemplating tax hikes was an article on how the pay of school superintendents is inflated by a variety of contract sweeteners that end up costing state taxpayers millions of dollars a year. No matter where you look, waste, spending abuse and outright fraud are to be found.

We will soon find out whether Corzine is part of the solution or part of the problem.

_________________________________________________________

Lawmakers warned on pension funding

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

By TOM HESTER Sr.

Newhouse News Service

The former chairman of a special task force that examined the funding crisis in New Jersey's public pension system warned lawmakers yesterday the problem will snowball if they don't pump more money into the fund.

Philip D. Murphy, a retired Goldman, Sachs & Co. executive, told the Assembly Budget Committee the state needs to stop using gimmicks and borrowing to prop up the pension system.

"Pension costs have been a third-tier priority for the state for too long. It needs to be a top priority," said Murphy, who headed Gov. Richard Codey's now-defunct Pension and Benefits Review Task Force.

Gov. Jon Corzine is scheduled to unveil his state budget next week. He is attempting to close a $4.5 billion deficit. The budget must account for a $1.8 billion payment into the public retirement programs.

Murphy told the committee that legislators and governors from both parties, as well as politically connected public employees, are at fault for underfunding the pension system.

"The individuals who work for the state, the majority overwhelmingly put in an honest day's work for an honest day's pay," he said. "Nobody is getting rich off the back of the state except those who abuse the system."

Murphy called for an end to pension padding tactics such as end-of-career salary hikes and counting minor public positions toward pension eligibility. He said basing a pension on the average of an individual's five highest salaries, rather than the highest three as done now, would save the state $45 million to $260 million.

He said public employees should earn at least $5,000 annually instead of the current $1,500 to qualify for a pension, a move the Task Force maintained would save $3.7 million. He also said having current and retired public employees pay 5 percent of health-care costs would save the state $350 million.

Assemblyman Louis D. Greenwald, D-Voorhees, the Budget Committee chairman, said any legislation to confront the pension problems will be created with input from Corzine and state employee unions.

"It is going to happen during the budget process but we do not want to rush into anything," Greenwald said. "We want to make sure we get it right."

Carla Katz, president of CWA Local 1034, the largest state employee union, said she opposes basing a pension on five years of highest pay instead of three years, but does want to see the practice of pension boosting ended.

"There is definite interest in crafting legislation to eliminate the abuses and bring integrity to the system," she said.

______________________________________________________________________________________

Corzine looks at 7% sales tax
Wednesday, March 15, 2006


Governor Corzine may push the state sales tax from 6 to 7 percent as part of a massive package of tax increases to balance the state budget, according to legislators briefed on the plan.

The sales tax hike could raise a badly needed $1.1 billion for the state Treasury but set off a political firestorm hotter than Trenton has seen in years. The last governor to author such a sweeping tax hike, Democrat Jim Florio, provoked a public backlash so bitter that in the next elections Republicans took control of both houses of the Legislature with "veto-proof'' majorities that repealed the tax increases.

Corzine is looking to go one step further than Florio and include possible increases in the income tax, according to three legislators and two staff members familiar with the budget proposals.

Lawmakers who were briefed on Corzine's plan cautioned the exact details were far from final, but stressed that tax increases would likely be a part of the budget the former Goldman Sachs chairman presents next week.

The Governor's Office declined to comment on the tax plan.

"We have no new announcements at this time," Corzine spokesman Anthony Coley said. The governor and his staff are still preparing key details of the budget.

The first-term governor must come up with a combination of tax increases, budget cuts or both to close a $3.5 billion budget gap. Corzine has promised that his spending proposal will include steep cuts to state programs and services.

Lawmakers and aides who met with Corzine this week said the administration hopes to raise a total of $1.5 billion from higher sales taxes. The state would collect $1.1 billion by charging the higher rate. Most of the remainder would come from expanding the tax to dozens of consumer goods that are now exempt.

Details on what new items would be included have not yet been settled. But the lawmakers said there is not likely to be new taxes on food and clothing -- an option that had been recommended by members of Corzine's transition team.

A Corzine income tax hike could come in the form of a surcharge for affluent taxpayers, the sources said, but it was unclear exactly who would pay and how much would be charged. Legislative aides also said the Corzine staff has discussed eliminating some deductions for wealthier residents.

Republican lawmakers were quick to challenge Corzine on any plan to raise taxes.

Assembly GOP leader Alex DeCroce said Corzine should be talking about budget cuts before any tax increases.

"It is troubling that before we have had any real discussion of possible spending cuts the governor appears to have made a decision to increase taxes. It is equally troubling that this tax hike proposal is being floated while the administration is still considering big ticket spending programs like stem-cell research," DeCroce said.

Any increase could be financial doom for many families and business, he said.

"Taxpayers who are already stretched to their limit by our highest-in-the-nation property taxes may be forced to pick up and leave the state," DeCroce said.

Whatever Corzine proposes, it must clear the Assembly and the Senate. What finally gets approved rarely looks like the budget originally proposed by the governor. The budget message is the start of months of hearings, back room deals and late-night negotiations.

To balance his first state budget, Corzine must surmount a structural deficit once estimated at nearly $5 billion but now considerably smaller.

A growing economy has brought in more tax revenue, mostly in income taxes from individuals and corporations, than officials counted on when they passed the current $27.9 billion budget in June. Corzine must sign a balanced budget by July 1.

Compounding Corzine's financial pressure is his promise to increase property tax rebates, raising the program by 10 percent over what it was in 2004 before it was cut to balance the 2005 state budget.

Coley declined to say how the rebates figured into the budget talks.

"We're not ready to go there. We have nothing new to announce at this time," he said.

People making purchases in New Jersey account for $6.8 billion a year in revenue at the current 6 percent rate.

While New Jersey has the nation's highest median household income, it also has some of the highest state and local taxes.

____________________________________________________________________________

Less state aid equals more tax
Wednesday, March 15, 2006






Proposed public school budgets submitted to the Passaic County schools superintendent on Tuesday carried some high increases in property taxes, as well as local officials' low expectations that state funding would remain at 2005 levels.

Many area district officials find themselves walking a fine budget line that could become even thinner if state aid does not meet projections. Nevertheless, homeowners will see higher property tax assessments.

"We believe it's going to go down," Jeanette Makus,business administrator for the Manchester Regional High School District, said of state aid on Tuesday. "The governor is in a bind."

Earlier this month, Gov. Jon S. Corzine put a damper on local school district officials' hopes for more state aid when he reportedly told a group of more than 100 school officials that he would try to maintain the $9.5 billion the state contributes to public schools, despite the $4.6 billion budget shortfall.

Manchester's $14.4 million proposed spending plan for the 2006-07 school year – a 9 percent increase over last year – is depending on $4.3 million from Trenton. The budget also includes a 21 percent jump from the current tax levy of $7.5 million to $9.1 million for 2006-07.

That translates into household increases for the Manchester district's three communities: $391.88 for a Haledon property owner where the average home assessment is $159,915; $208.06 for Prospect Park where the average assessment is $146,000; and $109.42 for North Haledon where the average assessment comes to $142,168.

In Little Falls, Board of Education secretary Warren Ceurvels said he expects state money to remain flat or even decrease because of the state's tenuous fiscal condition.

"We've been at the same level of state aid for the last four years," he said Monday.

The $11.4 million budget the school board unanimously passed Monday night represented a 3.3 percent increase from last year's budget of $11.1 million that included $727,908 in expected state money. The school district plans to support the budget with a $ 9.9 million tax levy, up 7.6 percent from last year's levy of $9.2 million.

Homeowners assessed at the township average of $147,000 would pay about an added$135 next year if voters approve the budget on April 18 during the school board election.

Meanwhile, the Prospect Park school district's proposed $9.4 million budget, a 2.6 percent jump from last year, also is predicated on receiving $1.11 million in state funds.

John DiPalo, the school district's business administrator, said if the state didn't meet funding projections, it could mean the district's tax levy would increase more than the 8 percent jump that is currently in the proposed budget.

The spending plan now calls for property owners to pay an additional $174,607 in the local levy, which means an additional $131.63 annually for a home at the borough's average assessment of $146,000.

Meanwhile, Pequannock school district officials said voters will face a two-part tax increase on April's ballot to finance the kind of 2006-07 school system parents have publicly called for -- with services including upgraded technology and top-of-the-line athletics.

If the proposed property tax levy is approved for 2006-07 $30.5-million operating budget, plus an extra tax for added items, it would mean an additional $230 in property taxes for an owner of a home assessed at $468,700.

School officials have had to split the tax because of state limits on increases in tax-supported spending. Voters will see a $26.65 million proposal to finance the bulk of the budget. A second proposal will seek $622,844 more to pay for items that can't be squeezed into the regular spending plan because of state limits. The state allows such secondary referendums, with the specific costs listed.

In this case, school officials have separated out major hi-tech, music, nursing, and sports program costs into the second tax request.

District officials expect to learn what fiscal realities they are facing when state aid figures are released on March 23 – two days after Corzine delivers his recommended state budget.

Reach Paul Brubaker at (973) 569-7155 or brubaker @northjersey.com, and Jennifer Cunningham at (973) 569-7162 or cunningham@northjersey.com.

E-m/ail: mcalpin@northjersey.com

____________________________________________________________________________

For school officials, perks pay (from the NJ School Administrators website)


Top school administrators throughout the state routinely get perks and bonuses that give them thousands of dollars beyond their published salaries and ultimately cost taxpayers millions of dollars, according to a State Commission of Investigation, or SCI, report released Monday.

The problem is not school officials, but the system, which the report said is “riddled with inconsistencies and freighted with pressures that render it vulnerable to abuse.” It calls for more state oversight by both the state Department of Education and the N.J. Division of Pensions.

“This is not a report about individuals,” SCI spokesman Lee Seglem said. “It's a report about a system. We are not condemning people for making a decent living doing a hard job.”

 

 

Press of Atlantic City

March 14, 2006

_____________________________________________________________________________

A BIT OF HISTORY: THE RECORD COLUMN BELOW FROM JULY 2005 ABOUT TRENTON’S ‘OFF BUDGET’’ OR ‘BELOW THE LINE’ AGREEMENTS FOR SPENDING FOR FY06 DEMONSTRATES WHY THERE IS NO PUBLIC DISCUSSION OVER SOME SPENDING THAT GETS FOLDED INTO THE BASELINE BUDGET FOR THE SUBSEQUENT YEAR (FY07 IN THIS CASE). IN THE CASE OF SCHOOL AID, THE ADDITIONAL FUNDS WERE GIVEN TO CERTAIN DISTRICTS VIA  A “JBOC” TRANSFER ( JOINT BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE) IN THE WINTER OF 2006. THIS METHOD OF GETTING ADDITIONAL AID TO ABBOTT DISTRICTS – among other state programs - HAS BEEN AN ON-GOING PRACTICE IN TRENTON IN RECENT YEARS.

Budget 'cuts' more a case of creative math
Monday, July 18, 2005






Warning: Numbers ahead.

And not just regular numbers. They're Trenton numbers, so if you need more coffee, get it now.

The budget that acting Governor Codey signed July 2 calls for spending $27.9 billion for the fiscal year that runs through next June. That's about $100 million less than the budget then-Gov. James E. McGreevey signed a year ago.

But if you think Codey and the Democratic-led Legislature cut spending, you don't know state government. They may have cut the budget, but they didn't cut spending.

Here's how.

First of all, the Legislature approved a bill July 2 to increase Homestead Rebates by $400 million. But the bill specified that it was a supplemental appropriation for Fiscal Year 2005, which ended on June 30, or two days before Codey signed it.

Now, Treasurer John McCormac's talented, but he has not mastered time travel. If he had, he'd have done something about the final four games of the 2004 American League Championship Series by now, and the Curse of the Bambino would still live.

A lower bottom line

But I digress. Because there's no way for the Treasury Department to go back in time and send out the rebates in a fiscal year that ended two days before the money was appropriated, the $400 million was "carried forward" into this fiscal year, and it will be spent on rebates that go out this summer.

That is exactly how the Democrats wanted it spent in the first place, by the way. So why designate the $400 million as an FY05 appropriation, you might wonder?

Two reasons: Unanticipated revenue collected in FY05 made it possible to do it. And if they didn't do it, they would have had to carry that unanticipated revenue forward into the budget and then count the rebate's cost against the FY06 bottom line, which then would have been higher than the bottom line of the bill McGreevey signed last year, so no one could claim to have cut the budget.

Also, since Codey proposed the budget in March, state Education Commissioner William Librera has approved about $150 million more for supplemental programs in Abbott districts, the mostly urban school districts covered by a series of Supreme Court rulings. That money, which districts have been told to expect in their budgets, was never budgeted by the administration or appropriated by the Legislature.

Presumably, there will have to be another bill to cover those costs, or a special legislative committee will have to approve a transfer to the Education Department. Where the money will come from will be interesting to watch, but one thing's for sure: That $150 million is not in the $27.9 billion bottom line.

'Off-budget'

Last, the final budget agreement called for providing an extra $100 million for "charity care," the program that funds hospital bills for people with no insurance. But you won't find that $100 million, or the more than $500 million Codey originally proposed spending on charity care, in the $27.9 billion budget either. That's because almost the entire program is "off-budget," along with nearly $13 billion in other spending the state will make this year.

Why is all this money off-budget? Because the Legislature and the governor say so.

Off-budget spending generally falls into one of three categories: federally funded programs; revolving funds, where money that comes in is paid back out for the same purpose; and programs with dedicated revenues such as charity care, which is funded by a portion of cigarette taxes, a diversion of payroll taxes originally imposed for unemployment insurance, assessments on HMOs and emergency clinics and several smaller levies, including a tax on cosmetic surgery.

An old trick

Could these programs all be included in the budget? Sure they could, but that would make the bottom line on spending shoot up even higher, and no governor wants to say he increased spending by 46 percent just to make the budget honest.

It should be noted that Codey and the Democrats did not invent the practice of putting programs off-budget; it has gone on for decades. But they're certainly not showing any eagerness to stop it.

So what does this all mean?

I'll concede that it does not mean much to people's daily lives. As long as the check clears, you don't really care which fiscal year's budget included the money for your rebate. If you have to go to the hospital and don't have insurance, you don't care if the program that pays your bill is on-budget or off-budget.

If you have a child in an Abbott district, all you care about is whether the after-school or tutoring program that Librera told your district it could offer is offered, not how the bureaucracy authorizes the expenditure.

But when the bottom line in the budget is not really the bottom line, it makes it that much harder to believe anything the government says.

E-mail: jackson@northjersey.com