Towns Challenge New Jersey Voters’ Wishes
By WINNIE HU
Published: May 27, 2010
After years of frustration over school taxes, New Jersey residents turned out in record numbers last month to reject 58 percent of their school districts’ budget proposals — sounding an unmistakable call to arms that echoed across the country.
Comment on This ArticleBut in the weeks since, many of the 316 defeated budgets have been adopted with few, if any, changes by town councils, where members risked thwarting the will of voters — and incurring their wrath — rather than cut sports, lay off teachers or increase class sizes.
In Ridgewood, an affluent village in Bergen County known for its schools, the Council whittled $100,000 from the proposed $84.9 million budget, or 0.1 percent. Average savings to taxpayers: $12 per year.
In Woodbridge, a working-class township in Middlesex County, the Council shaved $1 million (0.5 percent) from a $182.5 million budget, saving taxpayers an average of $25 each. And in Parsippany-Troy Hills, in Morris County, where the school budget had been voted down for the second consecutive year, the Council trimmed $800,000 (0.6 percent) from a nearly $127 million spending plan (average savings: $52).