School Referendum In The Works To Address Chatham Budget Concerns

CHATHAM, NJ — A potential referendum will go before the Chatham public as a way to combat rising inflation costs that are facing the local school district.

The School District of the Chathams has been facing a continuing decline of both teachers and paraprofessionals, along with other future budget concerns and necessary capital improvements.

According to Bradley Smith, chair of the board's finance and facilities committee, a list of all capital improvements that are needed with the schools, which are viewed as a priority, was recently compiled.

The finance and facilities committee is first considering receiving a portion of that funding from a state financing grant known as a ROD grant. The ROD grant program, which Governor Phil Murphy introduced this year, allows school districts to receive at least 40% of approved eligible project costs.

Smith stated that the school district intends to apply for a ROD grant for all needed capital projects and then decide which ones are more important. Security vestibules, roof construction, and other structure renovations and painting are among the capital improvements.

According to the New Jersey Department of Education, only projects that do not require a local referendum to raise the local funding portion will be eligible for ROD grant funding.

"Peter Daquila gave us a projection for the next three years in terms of the budget and it shows that the revenue continues to be outpaced by even the most modest expense increases. Inflation is a real problem," Smith said.

The potential referendum could be used to offset those costs, and if included on the ballot, it would have to be proposed prior to the first draft of the next school budget, which is typically completed in March.

The finance and facilities committee, in collaboration with Chatham School District Business Administrator Peter Daquila, are currently engaged in a fluid and ongoing discussion about the potential second question and what it would address.

The referendum could potentially also help the district retain teachers and paraprofessionals, which is an issue that has been plaguing the district all year.

Previous comments made by local resident Bill Heap about the school district's financial situation were also brought up during the school board meeting.

"This is a revenue opportunity for you. If you're going to ask for money, especially the borough, it seems to me that you should be exploring all the opportunities that are available to you first. You're going to have to start budgeting and managing for declining enrollment," Heap said.

According to Superintendent Michael LaSusa, the district has already been managing and budgeting through this period of declining enrollment, citing cuts made to staff within the district.

"One of the reasons we have been able to maintain a budget within the two percent tax levy cap all the way up until this point has been that we've been reducing staff where there are fewer children. We have been adding staff as the bubble has gone through the snake toward the upper levels, but the number of children is not the only variable that drives our needs and costs," LaSusa said.

In a previous comment made by Board of Education President Jill Weber, a large portion of the school budget is spent on salaries and benefits.