Schools
State Plans To Cut Lacey School Aid Again; This Time By $1.3M
The proposal from Governor Phil Murphy's administration would make Lacey lose even more funding than last year.
LACEY, NJ — The Lacey Township School District may face an even bigger budget cut than it did last year. That's according to the proposed state aid numbers for the 2020-21 school year that Governor Phil Murphy's administration proposed Thursday.
The state budget calls for a $1,310,170 cut to Lacey's aid. That would bring Lacey's state-aid figure to $19,037,074, a 6.44 percent decrease from the current school year.
Murphy, whose administration has taken heat for state aid cuts to hundreds of schools, also proposed a one-time $50 million burst in aid to stabilize school finances without cutting vital student programs. Read more: These 193-Plus Districts May Face Tax Hike: NJ School Aid Figures
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Lacey's state aid totaled $20,347,244 for this school year. The figure represents a 2.97 percent cut of $623,156 from 2018.
Several Ocean County school districts faced budget cuts last year because of S2 aid reductions. Lacey was one of five school districts in the county and 34 in New Jersey to apply for emergency aid.
Find out what's happening in Barnegat-Manahawkinfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The 34 districts requested $362,577,141 in emergency aid. The state awarded $15,050,034 in total. Lacey requested $623,156 and received nothing.
Lacey schools will face state-aid cuts of $4.8 million from 2019-25, according to the district. The district put guidance online for what concerned citizens can do about it, including calls to Murphy and state officials.
The district, meanwhile, invites community members to participate in "Strategic Planning Weekend." The public will work with school leaders to identify strengths and evaluate issues.
Strategic Planning Weekend runs from 6-9:30 p.m. March 6 and 8:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. March 7 in the Lacey Township High School Media Center. Click here to RSVP by noon Tuesday.
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