Lawsuit targets school funding

TRENTON | A fiscal critic of Gov. Jon S. Corzine said he filed a lawsuit Monday to halt the borrowing of $3.9 billion without voter approval for school construction projects across the state, including a new high school in Phillipsburg.

Steven Lonegan, executive director of the state chapter of Americans for Prosperity, said in the suit that the measure approved by the Legislature last month violates a clause in the state constitution put in place to control government spending.

He said the new borrowing should go to voters to uphold the constitution and stop what he called a long-running practice in New Jersey of "runaway spending."

"For the past two years, Gov. Jon Corzine has been preaching about the state's debt crisis," Lonegan said. "The question is: Is there a debt crisis or not? And if there is, how do you borrow more money?"

Lonegan sought the Republican nomination for governor in 2005 and is considered a possible contender in the 2009 race. A vocal opponent of state borrowing, he announced earlier this month that he would challenge the measure that was signed into law July 9 by Corzine to bond $3.9 billion.

Of the approved funding, $2.9 billion is for court-ordered school construction projects in poor districts formerly known as Abbotts. The money will go toward funding 53 projects, including a $174.4 million high school in the Phillipsburg School District, where some students attend classes in 31 trailers on the property.

Phillipsburg acting Superintendent George Chando said he was not too concerned about the effect the lawsuit could have on the local project. He said he thinks the governor and attorney general would have thoroughly reviewed the legality of the proposal before putting it forward.

"Everything's open to legal challenge," Chando said.

Larry Hanover, spokesman for the Schools Development Authority overseeing school construction projects in the former Abbott districts, said the 53 projects are moving forward as planned.

An additional $1 billion of the approved funding will be distributed in the form of grants to subsidize projects in suburban districts.

Opponents of the spending have criticized Corzine for approving the borrowing while supporting a proposed constitutional amendment that would prohibit major bonding without voter approval.

Corzine has said he supports pushing forward the latest school construction proposal because it will be funded with a dedicated revenue source, the income tax. The governor also promised the New Jersey Supreme Court he would deliver funding for the state's poorest districts after a court order.

"Gov. Corzine believes that there is a legal and moral obligation to ensure every child in New Jersey has a safe, clean, healthy environment to learn in without any further delay," Corzine spokeswoman Deborah Howlett said Monday.

The lawsuit seeks to block the Economic Development Authority from selling the $3.9 billion in bonds without getting voter approval.

Some have questioned how far the challenge will go.

"It's hard to imagine that this is going to go anywhere because the court has ruled on this issue with regards to school construction," said Elizabeth Athos, senior attorney at the Education Law Center, which advocates for underprivileged children.