Manchester School Board OKs Proposed $61.8M Budget For 2021-22

MANCHESTER, NJ — The Manchester Township Board of Education approved a proposed $61.8 million budget for the 2021-22 school year on Tuesday evening.

The budget includes an increase in the property tax levy of about 1.49 percent, which works out to about $43 for the year for a home assessed at the township average of $199,300, said Craig Lorenzten, the Manchester schools business administrator.

The proposed budget, which must be approved by the state Department of Education, includes funding to purchase new math textbooks for sixth through eighth grades, plus new textbooks for the high school for Advanced Placement history and science courses, plus art; about 1,600 Chromebooks to replace ones that have reached the end of their lifespan and are no longer supported with Google updates; and funding for updates to the district's curriculum to meet state standards.

Lorentzen said the district has been able to reduce expenses in some areas, including maintenance costs for its buildings and grounds and its fleet of about 60 buses, by bringing those services into the district instead of contracting for them.

It also has been able to control energy costs through an energy education program and solar panels that were purchased in 2009 and that the district now owns.

The district is seeing a reduction of $106,000 in state funding, part of the cuts under S2, the state law that is taking millions from some districts under the contention that they are not paying their fair share of property taxes.

Lorentzen said the district's reduction, while it hurts, is not as drastic as elsewhere because the district receives very little state aid. The district's state aid, which makes up about 10 percent of its budget revenues, has historically been much lower because Manchester is seen as being able to pay more because it has so many fewer students than usual for a town of its size.

Because Manchester's population is dominated by senior communities, where there are no children, it skews the state's wealth calculation and makes it appear as though Manchester is a wealthy town, Lorentzen said.

"We look like we have the ability to pay but we're not a rich town," he said.

The district is anticipating receiving funding under the CARES Act, which will be used for summer programs to address learning loss as a result of the pandemic, he said.

The budget did not include any cuts in staff, and class sizes have remained among the smallest for districts that have fewer than 3,500 students, Lorentzen said, while the district spends slightly more than the state average per pupil.

The increase in the operations budget was 1.35 percent and includes the use of about $770,000 in surplus funds, he said.

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