School Funding Flunks

“There is some Hocus Pocus in the new state funding formula.” (Christopher Kobik, Superintendent, Lower Cape May Regional School District) 
According to Superintendent Christopher Kobik, his district, Lower Cape May Regional, and the rest of Cape May County is “taking a big hit” when it comes to a new state aid formula to K-12 schools recently passed in the state Legislature.
According to NJ.com and NJ Advance Media, the new funding formula is supported by Sen. Stephen Sweeny (D-3rd) and will redistribute $9 billion in state aid to schools over the next seven years.
The result of this aid redistribution is that the state will re-allocate funds such that many school districts in Cape May County will see state aid significantly reduced.
The new formula identifies school districts which are either ”underfunded” or “over funded” based on recent enrollment data collected by the state. State aid will be allocated based on those data.
According to Sweeney, as reported by NJ.com, “the current system has become unfair to schools and harmful to taxpayers.” According to figures available there, most school districts in Cape May County are “overfunded” and will lose state aid over the next seven years if the governor signs the legislation as it reads.
This data shows how much state aid representative Cape May County school districts get now vs. what it will receive under the proposed school funding reform for the 2019 budget year. (Source NJ.com, data from NJ Office of Legislative Services). 
Lower Cape May Regional: $8,857,450 (2018); $8,301,309 (2019) – $556,141 – 6.3 percent (reduction)   
Wildwood Crest: $500,618 (2018); $492,029 (2019) – $8,589 – 1.7 percent (reduction)   
Ocean City: $1,150,045 (2018); $1,178,796 (2019) – $28,751 – 2.5 percent (increase) 
Stone Harbor: $52,892 (2018); $52,435 (2019) – $457 – 0.9 percent (reduction) 
The Herald contacted Wildwood Crest Borough Administrator Constance Mahon regarding the school funding issue. Mahon explained the borough’s view:
“Senate Bill S-2 and its companion Assembly Bill A-2 would modify the school funding law and redistribute some of the $9 billion the state provides to school districts in direct aid annually. This proposed reappropriation of aid would take funding from schools that are considered by the state to be overfunded and shift it to those who are considered underfunded.  
“Ironically, I know of no school in this county that anyone would consider overfunded. Schools are struggling every day to provide the level of service and quality of education that our children deserve. This Robin Hood approach to school funding will create a financial dilemma for not only Wildwood Crest residents but a vast majority of our county residents.”
Kobik feels that this educational funding challenge can and will be met by his district. Kobik and his staff, plus Sen. Jeff Van Drew (D-1st) had met concerning this possibility last year to discuss options and future funding formulas.
Kobik views the new formula as “unrealistic,” and is based on flawed definitions of “over funded” and “under funded” school districts.
As an example, Kobik noted that part of the formula addresses special education students who require a higher level of funding. The state formula designates Lower Cape May Regional as having 15 percent special education population, when in reality, that population is 25 to 26 percent; “the state figures just don’t add up,” he added. “I feel that there is some hocus pocus in this formula, and it’s certain that the state’s figures are just not realistic.”
To deal with projected funding shortfalls next year, Kobik is planning to continue cost-saving initiatives such as reducing staff through attrition, continuing the use of solar panels to save energy costs and finding transportation-sharing agreements where practical.
He also plans to cut the purchase of three new buses to two for 2019.
To contact Jim McCarty, email jmccarty@cmcherald.com.