TRENTON – Senator Jeff Van Drew (Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic) issued the following statement May 2 on the school funding debate as part of the FY2018 budget process:
“The 1st Legislative District would be the most severely impacted under the proposal being discussed in Trenton to fully fund the school funding formula and to make adjustments to provisions that have protected districts from losing aid. It would cut critically needed funding to school districts in my legislative district that are already struggling to make ends meet.
“We shouldn’t be taking from students in some districts to give funding to others. Just because a school population has declined, it doesn’t mean that we no longer need to fund specific programs, to run a bus line or to keep the lights on in the buildings. We need to look at the best way to address funding for the districts that are underfunded without causing havoc in those that may be deemed adequately funded under the formula but are still barely getting by.
“We don’t know yet how school funding will be impacted by this budget, but all of the schools are in the process of preparing their budgets now and any changes that reduce funding would mean chaos. Programs would be cut and school children would be harmed. I can’t possibly support that. I will not vote for any budget that hurts schools in my district.”
