School
overhaul fund to need boost
State agency chief calls $6 billion
'insignificant' compared to urban districts' needs
Monday, November 08, 2004 • BY CHANDRA M. HAYSLETT
• Star-Ledger Staff
The chief executive of the Schools Construction Corp.
said yesterday the state Legislature will need to come up
with additional funding to complete the court-ordered
overhaul of urban schools.
Addressing about 300 parents and students from some of
the 31 poorest districts during a gathering in New
Brunswick, SCC chief executive officer John Spencer said the
$6 billion initially set aside was insignificant compared to
what the state will eventually pay to replace and repair
schools.
"We know when we look at the money that was originally
allocated, it was a starting point," Spencer said. "It was
insignificant. We are working with the governor, the
Assembly and senators to address this issue."
Funding is expected to dry up in early 2006 -- far
sooner than legislators or superintendents expected and
short of ensuring that all necessary construction projects
are completed. The $6 billion was the lion's share of $8.6
billion the Legislature appropriated in 2000 to revitalize
New Jersey's schools. The SCC, a public agency, is
responsible for implementing the $8.6 billion overhaul of
the educational infrastructure of hundreds of schools in
districts throughout all 21 counties in New Jersey.
Spencer told the group he will ask Gov. James E.
McGreevey for more money to further fund school construction
before the governor leaves office in a week. McGreevey has
promised to resign Nov. 15 in the aftermath of a sex scandal
involving former aide Golan Cipel, who accused the governor
of sexual harassment.
Reached at his home last night, Senate Minority Leader
Leonard Lance disputed that $6 billion was insignificant,
calling it "a great deal of funding." The Hunterdon County
Republican also said any decision on future appropriations
for school construction should be made by the public.
"School construction bonding should require voter
approval," said Lance, a longtime critic of state borrowing
who successfully sued McGreevey earlier this year after the
governor said he planned to use $1.9 billion in borrowed
funds to balance the current state budget.
In 1998, the state Supreme Court ordered the overhaul of
decaying school buildings in New Jersey's poorest systems,
known as Abbott districts, after finding them "crumbling and
obsolescent." In Abbott vs. Burke, the court ordered the
state to close the gap between poor districts and wealthier
districts.
By the end of this school year, the SCC will have funded
20 new Abbott district schools, Spencer said. An additional
30 Abbott schools will be built in 2005 and another 40 in
2006, he said.
Spencer said it is unclear how much it will take to
finish the job because long-range facilities plans for each
school district are not due into the state Department of
Education until October 2005. Once those plans are in, the
education department and SCC will be able to determine
funding needs to continue the program.
"That is the key document, which says what are the true
requirements," Spencer told the group gathered as part of a
two-day workshop sponsored by the Statewide Education
Organization Committee and the Housing and Community
Development Network of New Jersey. "We have to analyze them
to say what is needed to build schools."
Assemblyman Craig Stanley (D-Essex) said another bond
must be passed within five to six months to make sure the
funds are there for the state-sponsored program to continue
after February 2006.
So far, the SCC has signed contracts for $1.8 billion of
the $2.6 billion available for schools in the suburbs. In
the cities, it has signed contracts worth $3.2 billion, more
than half the allotted $6 billion.
Chandra M. Hayslett covers Middlesex County. She can be
reached at chayslett@starledger.com or at (732) 404-8089.
© 2004 The Star-Ledger. Used by NJ.com with
permission.
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