CAPE MAY- City Council is requesting Lower Cape May Regional Board of Education approve a voter referendum to allow a change in the school funding formula for Cape May.
Council approved a resolution requesting a referendum at a Dec. 4 meeting.
In addition, council authorized a professional services agreement in the amount of $48,000 with the law firm of Porzio Bromberg and Newman for the services of attorney Vito Gagliardi, a specialist in changing regional school funding formulas.
He will produce a feasibility study to see what methods Cape May can use to decrease the cost of sending students to the regional school district. Cape May is paying about $80,000 for each student sent to the regional school district up from $41,000 six years ago
Deputy Mayor Jack Wichterman said Gagliardi told council it was highly unlikely the city would receive any help from state legislators.
“However, there are certain steps we have to go through before we can challenge this funding in court and this is one of the steps,” said Wichterman.
He said the city had to present a request for a referendum on the school funding formula to the Lower Cape May Regional Board of Education. A copy of council’s resolution requesting a referendum will also being given to regional school board member Gary Gilbert, who represents Cape May on the board.
Council will ask him to offer the same resolution at a regional school board meeting.
“Common sense dictates the fact that they are going to go down to defeat because the seven members of the school board who reside in Lower Township are obviously not going to want to conduct a referendum to change the funding formula,” said Wichterman.
He said even if the funding formula question went to referendum it would not pass because of the disparity in the number of voters between Cape May, West Cape May and Lower Township.
Currently Lower Township has 15,217 registered voters while Cape May has 1,631 voters and West Cape May has 830 voters.
Wichterman said he has been supplying information to Gagliardi for a feasibility study.
In 2005, Cape May hired Gagliardi as a consultant. He helped North Haledon in its quest to withdraw from the Manchester Regional School District.
At that time, he recommended Cape May take steps necessary to bring about a voter referendum to ask residents of this city, West Cape May and Lower Township to dissolve the Lower Cape May Regional School District.
Unanimous cooperation of Cape May City Council, West Cape May Commission, and the school boards of both towns was needed to proceed. That did not happen.
In December 2003, the regional school board voted 6-2 against a resolution from Cape May asking to change the funding formula to one based on 60 percent from property value and 40 percent based on the amount of students sent to the district. The school board also voted against placing a referendum on the April 2004 school board election ballot for changing the regional school funding formula.
The process stopped for Cape May in January 2005 when both West Cape May Borough Commission and the West Cape May Board of Education voted against holding a voter referendum.
Referendums have been attempted throughout the state but none have passed.
Cape May – Governor Murphy says he doesn't know anything about the drones and doesn't know what they are doing but he does know that they are not dangerous. Does anyone feel better now?
