Warren County school election voters keep Phillipsburg incumbents, wrestle with budgets

Incumbent Phillipsburg school board members Sal Patti, John Hanisak and Kevin DeGerolamo retained their seats, according to unofficial results from Tuesday's school elections.

They were involved in one of six contested races in Warren County with enough candidates on the ballot for open seats.

Across the county, school officials and voters also wrestled with school board budgets in a difficult economy.

According to unofficial results for 19 districts reporting, 13 budgets passed. The budgets that failed were Alpha, Hackettstown, Oxford and Hope townships and Warren Hills Regional and Great Meadows Regional.

Vying for 19 contested seats, 12 incumbents held onto their posts and seven newcomers won spots on school boards, including Phillipsburg, according to unofficial results.

Mike Yaple, spokesman for the New Jersey School Board Association, said most districts worked to keep tax increases low this year amid a recession. Traditionally, budgets fair poorly during times like these, he said.

"By and large, the success of school budgets goes with the economy," Yaple said. "It's not always a hard, fast rule, but there does seem to be a correlation."

For the past two years, voters have defeated Phillipsburg School District's budget. School board President Paul Rummerfield said he hoped this year would be different because the budget has no tax hike.

"You're always concerned when you put your budget out to vote," Rummerfield said. "We feel it was the best budget we could put together during these tough economic times."

To close a $2.3 million shortfall, school officials eliminated school board-funded field trips and cut 43 staff positions.

Rummerfield said he believes concerns from past years, including top heavy administration expenses, have been addressed. Restructuring of administration has saved the school district around $1.1 million, he said.

Some taxes on rise

For at least the past five years, Hackettstown School District has seen budget after budget pass. Superintendent Robert Gratz said he hoped the community's support continues.

"We have a history of a supportive community. We believe we have a budget presented to the community that is respectful of the taxpayers," said Gratz before the final tally.

The district proposed 6.7 cent tax increase, meaning a property at the town's average assessed value of $175,000 would see a $117 school tax increase.

Allamuchy Township taxpayers faced a 12-cent increase in taxes, and Superintendent Timothy Frederiks said he understood what the district was asking of voters. For a home assessed at $100,000, the hike translates to a $117 increase in school tax.

Frederiks said the increase is due in part to the construction of the school's new primary facility.

"I'm cautiously optimistic. I know it's a tough time for everyone in New Jersey. I know we're asking for a little bit more because we are opening a new school," Frederiks said.

Tax disparities evident

In the Great Meadows Regional School District, the disparity of school tax rates left Superintendent Jason Bing feeling cautious Tuesday afternoon.

"I think now more than ever the democratic right to vote is important," Bing said.

Liberty and Independence townships merged in 1993 to form Great Meadows. Liberty taxpayers pay more based on enrollment and a smaller number of commercial properties compared with Independence.

Independence Township is slated for a 1-cent tax increase, while Liberty faced a nearly 6-cent increase -- a $126 difference in tax payments for a home assessed at $100,000.

Franklin Township voters were just as divided Tuesday as the opposing tax implications in the separate budgets of their elementary school district and the Warren Hills Regional School District.

The elementary school put forth a budget with no tax increase, but under the Warren Hills budget, Franklin taxes were projected to rise by $48 for the owner of a home assessed at $100,000. The township's rising taxes over the last three years are due to its increased percentage of the total enrollment, according to Warren Hills officials.

According to unofficial results, the elementary school budget passed and the Warren Hills Regional budget failed.

Residents voice views

Township resident Sarah Favara said she voted against both school budgets because she is worried about spending more money at a time when people are losing their jobs.

"I think, right now, we should keep the budget as is and not try to raise any more money," Favara said. "Primarily, I'm just concerned about spending money that we just can't afford, that we don't have."

Fellow Franklin resident Tomas Gonzales argued that if a school budget does fail, district officials are forced to make additional cutbacks to already trimmed-down budgets.

"I really believe, whether you have kids or not, that education is part of our societal needs," said Gonzales, who supported both school budgets. "If you want a democracy, you've got to have educated children."

For township resident Alan Schneider, who voted against the budgets, New Jersey needs to address the larger issue of establishing a countywide school system, rather than having so many school districts with too many superintendents and principals.

"It's time to change," Schneider said.

Oxford Township voters also faced a second question, on continuing busing for students within 2 miles of the school and in Allamuchy Township. The question failed.

Second questions, reserved for budget items outside the core curriculum, have seen a sharp decline since the introduction of a law requiring a 60 percent of the vote to pass. Last year, when the law took effect, 33 questions made it to the ballot and only four passed. This year 11 questions have been proposed statewide.