The decades-old debate in New Jersey over how to fairly fund public education took another turn Tuesday when Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law the first major revamp of the state’s modern school funding formula since it was enacted in 2008.
The law envisions a massive redistribution of state aid over seven years from districts with shrinking enrollment or growing tax bases to those with booming populations and large numbers of high-need students. Taxpayers could get relief or an added burden, depending on which type of district they live in.
The law also relies on the state pumping more money — well over $1 billion, by some estimates — into schools over that period to bring all districts to “full funding,” a target that has proved elusive in recent years due to the Great Recession and defects in the formula that Tuesday’s bill signing is meant to fix.
"The budget is the first step in getting us to fully and fairly funding our public schools," Murphy, a Democrat, said at a bill-signing ceremony at Cliffside Park School No. 3, referring to the $8.5 billion in direct aid for school districts included in the budget he signed July 1. That is a $351 million increase over last year.
