The Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District Board of Education has adopted a $93.44 million budget to fund the operation of the district from July 1, 2019, through June 30, 2020. The budget was adopted by the board on May 7.
Board President Dotty Porcaro, Vice President Lori Semel and board members Janet Lewis, Joe Tringali, Brian Graime, Christine Parisi and Gerald Bruno voted “yes” on a motion to adopt the budget.
Board members Jim Raffone and Joanne Schechter were absent.
The budget will be supported by the collection of $68.3 million in taxes from residential and commercial property owners in Manalapan and Englishtown.
The 2019-20 school year will see a continuing reduction in the district’s state aid in accordance with legislation known as S-2 that was signed into law by Gov. Phil Murphy in 2018. State aid to the district will decline by $1.54 million, from $18.77 million in 2018-19 to $17.23 million in 2019-20.
The reduction in state aid to the school district is expected to continue through the 2024-25 school year in accordance with S-2, according to district administrators.
Commenting on the law that is reducing the district’s state aid on an annual basis, Superintendent of Schools John J. Marciante Jr. said, “Going forward, the situation will not get better unless things change.”
Manalapan-Englishtown is one of a number of New Jersey school districts that has filed a lawsuit against the state as a result of S-2. The Freehold Regional High School District is also a party to the legal action.
Marciante informed the board on May 7 he had a meeting scheduled for May 8 with the commissioner of education, but said it was his understanding the commissioner would not be able to comment on matters pertaining to S-2 because of the pending litigation.
Despite the ongoing loss of state aid, “the integrity of our academic program has been minimally impacted at this time by budget reductions,” Marciante said.
Reductions in the 2019-20 budget include the elimination of one central office administrative position, the elimination of a central office support staff position, the end of an agreement with Manalapan for Class III officers in two district schools, the replacement of 10 retired full-time instructional aides with 20 half-time positions and a 5% reduction in student supply accounts, according to the budget presentation.
Regarding the elimination of one central office administrative position, Business Administrator Veronica Wolf said, “The public asks for administrative cuts; however, the state mandates that administrative personnel are required to perform certain tasks that cannot be performed by teachers or secretaries.”
She said there is a limit to the number of tasks an administrator can perform during the school day.
On the revenue side of the budget, the board has established fees that will be paid by the parents of students who participate in extracurricular activities (i.e., sports and clubs). Board members eliminated proposed fees for the National Honor Society and student council.
Marciante said the fees will cover the honorariums that are paid to the staff members who coach and/or advise sports teams and clubs. He said a discussion would take place at an upcoming board meeting concerning the relationship between the fee paid by a student to participate on a sports team and the amount of playing time that individual would receive during games.
According to the budget presentation, for 2019-20, the K-8 school tax rate in Manalapan is estimated to be 94 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. The owner of a home assessed at $450,000 would pay about $4,230 in K-8 school taxes in the upcoming year.
According to the budget presentation, for 2019-20, the K-8 school tax rate in Englishtown is estimated to be 88.1 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. The owner of a home assessed at $350,000 would pay about $3,083 in K-8 school taxes in the upcoming year.
Wolf said until the Monmouth County Board of Taxation certifies the tax levy and the assessed values, exact tax rates are not available, only estimates based on information that was available when the budget was adopted by the board.
In addition to K-8 school taxes, property owners in Manalapan and Englishtown pay municipal taxes, Freehold Regional High School District taxes and Monmouth County taxes.
An individual will pay more or less in school taxes depending on the assessed value of his home and/or property and the tax rate that is set by each taxing entity.
The district’s enrollment on Oct. 13, 2017, was 4,989 pupils. The enrollment on Oct. 15, 2018, was 4,952 pupils. The estimated enrollment for Oct. 15, 2019, is 4,944 pupils, according to the User Friendly Budget posted on the district’s website.
