Phillipsburg School District grapples with uncertainty surrounding $4.5 million in state aid
Wednesday, January 27, 2010

By SARAH M. WOJCIK
The Express-Times

PHILLIPSBURG | School officials this week laid out what Business Administrator William Bauer is calling a "doomsday situation" loss of $4.5 million in state aid.

Bauer briefed the Phillipsburg school board on the potential shortfall Monday, saying he does not want to shock board members or taxpayers at the last minute before the April 20 school election.

"It's one of many rumors floating around, but it was one I needed to bring to the forefront in case it happened to come true," Bauer said.

"I have no way, no way to fill that hole," he said. "It's something that we're trying not to think about, but it's there in reality."

District officials have not gotten any concrete state aid projections, Bauer said, bringing budget preparations to a standstill.

State Department of Education spokeswoman Beth Auerswald said Tuesday she could not comment on whether the district is in danger of losing $4.5 million in state aid.

At the heart of Bauer's projections are the $1.3 billion New Jersey received last year in federal stimulus funds, and how that one-time infusion would affect 2010-11 state aid, he said.

Phillipsburg Superintendent Mark B. Miller said he could not elaborate on next year's budget because big questions in funding remain unanswered. The $4.5 million would be spread over the 2010-11 school year, Miller said.

"Without knowing the numbers from the state, I couldn't even venture to answer that," Miller said Tuesday. "It's all a big 'if' right now."

The district would face serious challenges if significant portions of the state aid are cut, the superintendent said.

"If that occurs, there's going to be cuts, but that's a worst-case scenario," Miller said.

The district had to cut 43 jobs to balance the 2009-10 school budget, and the situation in Trenton has only grown more dire since then for the Phillipsburg School District.

The state Supreme Court last May 28 approved a new school funding formula that eliminates special funding for the state's 31 poorest districts, including Phillipsburg.