Majority of school budgets pass (Union, Hoboken: city hall, high school, property taxes)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
i didnt really have the opportunity to go vote. i dont appreciate the voting started at 2pm. should be 8am, its easier for me to get there in the morning before work. i would have voted no. they mentioned a million times in the thing they sent out that taxes wouldnt need to be increased. i dont think thats enough, they only said they were cutting the budget by .3%, what a joke.
I guess Christies constant bashing of teachers is not working anymore. Many people are getting tired of it. Some counties passed the budgets without any defeats. Monmouth County passed them 10-1. So the people have spoke.
That's pretty flawed logic. Last year he encouraged everyone to vote down the budgets to send a message to the school boards and NJEA, for the most part, people did. This year he encouraged people to make an informed choice and vote yes on the budget if they are happy with it.
I only know of my local area, but last year only my towns budget passed as there was only a minor $10 per home increase as well as sensible cuts to replace the lost funding. The surrounding towns defeated their budgets as they included replacing the lost funding and then some. This year, my district received an increase in state aid and used that to lower our taxes $10 and restore some lost programs. Pretty good. Budgets in surrounding towns were passed as well, with only minor increases, while a major building project at the regional high school was soundly defeated.
That's pretty flawed logic. Last year he encouraged everyone to vote down the budgets to send a message to the school boards and NJEA, for the most part, people did. This year he encouraged people to make an informed choice and vote yes on the budget if they are happy with it.
I only know of my local area, but last year only my towns budget passed as there was only a minor $10 per home increase as well as sensible cuts to replace the lost funding. The surrounding towns defeated their budgets as they included replacing the lost funding and then some. This year, my district received an increase in state aid and used that to lower our taxes $10 and restore some lost programs. Pretty good. Budgets in surrounding towns were passed as well, with only minor increases, while a major building project at the regional high school was soundly defeated.
but, if the voice portrayed in the media is that people want lower taxes, why aren't people voting for lower taxes? are taxes lower in any town in NJ this year than they were 1 or 2 years ago?
but, if the voice portrayed in the media is that people want lower taxes, why aren't people voting for lower taxes? are taxes lower in any town in NJ this year than they were 1 or 2 years ago?
if i vote down the school budget, do you know what happens then? i feel like it still wouldnt work out to a lower budget, they would just force it on us somehow. but im not sure. i think parents and others are afraid that it would impact the school year so they mostly just support it and others dont vote against it. then you have all the people with vested interests voting for it. so you really need a good movement in order to vote them down.
but, if the voice portrayed in the media is that people want lower taxes, why aren't people voting for lower taxes? are taxes lower in any town in NJ this year than they were 1 or 2 years ago?
Surely you don't think that people don't want lower taxes. Of course they do. But there are a many ways to get there. Just because you vote yes on a school budget doesn't not automatically signify you have no desire to lower taxes.
but, if the voice portrayed in the media is that people want lower taxes, why aren't people voting for lower taxes? are taxes lower in any town in NJ this year than they were 1 or 2 years ago?
Well, taxes in my town haven't really gone up in 2 years. To me that, is a major accomplishment.
I can't speak for every town as property taxes are a local issue, but I based my decision to support the budget on the actions of my local school in terms of savings and sharing services. I think they have done an admirable job. I imagine drawing a line in the sand would be viewed as a victory for most.
I could also argue that it is impossible under the current union contracts for the schools to effect real cost savings. This was mentioned in another thread, but even poor liberal school districts point to the influence of the teachers union on collective bargaining and the restrictions on pension, healthcare, salary and tenure that continues to bind their hands. Essentially our towns/schools can't effect change on the largest contributors to their expenses.
I'm not a fan of everything that Christie has done.
But tell me this: how many budgets would have had increases over the 2% cap if he hadn't put that in place?
Agreed. This has them tighten thier belts and not request above and beyond. Thank god the senate and legislature passed this law and sent it to the governor. Now only if he would negotiate on the pension and benefits reform we might be able to get some of the inititives passed. Taxes went up on average 4.1 percent in Christies first year, maybe we can get them down to a only 2% increase this year.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.