Schools
Bloomfield School District Plans to Use Additional State Aid For 2012 Tax Relief
Board Decides to Hold Onto Extra Money For Next Year.
When Gov. Chris Christie authorized giving New Jersey schools $850 million in new aid under the state’s 2012 budget, many of the state’s districts had a small window to make a decision on how to spend it.
According to Superintendent Jason Bing, Bloomfield has decided to take the extra $790,429 state aid it received earlier this month and use it for tax relief in next year’s budget.
School Business Administrator Michael Dederian said at Tuesday's school board meeting the notification of extra funding came too late for school officials to hold an emergency gathering last week and appropriate it for the current year.
Instead, Bing and Dederian said they plan on holding onto the money and spending it next year to replace the $709,000 one-time federal aid the district received under President Barack Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Dederian said the federal aid was used for classroom instruction and technology, and the additional state aid will be able to continue those programs next year.
"Ultimately, it will make up the status quo," Dederian said. "We get the cash now, but we sit on it. It's a win-win."
