N.J. school choice bill to be revamped to gain approval
STATE HOUSE BUREAU
STATE HOUSE BUREAU
A controversial school choice bill will undergo significant changes in an effort to win legislative approval before the end of the month, its sponsor said Tuesday.
Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union) said the Opportunity Scholarship Act will be adjusted by limiting the pilot program to "chronically failing schools in specific municipalities," based on local legislators' support. The proposal had targeted 176 "chronically failing schools" throughout the state, Lesniak said. He declined to say how many schools might be targeted now, but cities still certain to be involved include Newark, Camden and Elizabeth, he said.
The new version of the bill would also eliminate an "innovation fund" and allow districts to keep the difference between the cost of the scholarship and the state aid for that child, Lesniak said. He spoke at a press conference where more than a dozen members of the Black Ministers' Council of New Jersey urged Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver (D-Essex) to support the bill.
The ministers said while Republican Governor Christie and Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) support the bill, Oliver was standing in the way. Oliver, who is the first African-American woman to hold the Assembly's top job, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Lesniak said he accepted the changes in order to win enough support to get the bill through the state Senate and Assembly, and said they will not undermine the
RECORD FILE PHOTO
Sen. Raymond Lesniak said he accepted the changes in order to win enough support to get the bill through the state Senate and Assembly,
The new version of the bill would also eliminate an "innovation fund" and allow districts to keep the difference between the cost of the scholarship and the state aid for that child, Lesniak said. He spoke at a press conference where more than a dozen members of the Black Ministers' Council of New Jersey urged Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver (D-Essex) to support the bill.
The ministers said while Republican Governor Christie and Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) support the bill, Oliver was standing in the way. Oliver, who is the first African-American woman to hold the Assembly's top job, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Lesniak said he accepted the changes in order to win enough support to get the bill through the state Senate and Assembly, and said they will not undermine the
