This Week At NJ21st: Referendums, Property Taxes and Demystifying Special Needs Spending

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Man, this week was interesting.

The 50 Million Berkeley Heights Public School Referendum shows up first on the radar.    

We held a substantial and informative conversation with the Superintendent and Business Administrator that goes far beyond the social media campaigns and flyers into the core governance issue driving the debate – budget and referendum alignment with academic achievement.

Shauna fact checks a widely distributed email that uses a familiar song we’ve heard in prior high pressure campaigns to influence voters.

Starting on the Civic Education front, we added another article to our ACFR series demystifying and breaking down how Special Needs factors into school spending and why different Districts under the same mandates throw out different numbers.

The Short Hills Association published its first in a series on Property Taxes. Staying on topic, The Department of Community Affairs published it’s annual report on property taxes for 2025 which we fed into our two dashboards that allow NJ residents to view the community’s property tax trends over 6 years and compare them against other municipalities.

We come back to education with an article from an Educator in our community that provides a comprehensive look at a regional consolidation study and implications for other Districts.

Oh ….and I wrote about three bills covered in committee that no one really read.

On the Socials….

Kudos to BHPSNJ Leadership for facing Hard Questions on the Referendum and tolerating Laura’s many mistakes in leading the discussion.  Tony is still not returning our calls.

Top Three Articles for December…

Know Your Rights: ICE and Law Enforcement in New Jersey

New Providence Planning Board Approves Massive Age Restricted Housing Development Amid Public Safety Concerns

Understanding the Red Flags in NJ’s Latest Pension Investment Audit

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NJ21st is an independent nonprofit civic journalism project focused on transparency, public records and accountability in both local and state government.

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