Aid Restored, Courtesy Busing Back For Freehold Regional HS Students

MANALAPAN, NJ — Gov. Murphy on Wednesday signed a bill to restore state aid cuts to the Freehold Regional High School District, preserving courtesy busing this year.

By restoring the aid, busing of thousands of students living within 2.5 miles of their high schools will again be provided for the new school year.

The elimination of courtesy busing caused an outcry from educators, parents and area officials and state legislators this spring. The district's six high schools are primarily on highways and the area is suburban, usually with no sidewalks for students.

State Sen. Vin Gopal, a sponsor of the bill, applauded Murphy for signing the bi-partisan legislation.

It will preserve courtesy busing in the Freehold Regional High School District and prevent further school funding cuts to the district under the 2018 “S2” law, he said.

“This legislation recognizes the tremendous work Freehold Regional has done to control costs through regionalization and will preserve essential services in the district going forward,” Gopal, D-11th District, said.

Under the bill, which Gopal introduced alongside Senate Republican Budget Officer Declan O’Scanlon, R-13th District, regional school districts that meet the following criteria will be exempt from cuts to their state aid:

• Includes five or more towns and has demonstrated it has mitigated the costs of regionalization.
• Spends at least 15 percent less in administrative costs than the statewide average for regional school districts.
• Has increased its tax levy by the maximum amount allowed by law in each of the last five years.

The bill establishes exemption from state school aid reductions for these types of school districts, according to Murphy's office.

According to Gopal, the law will take effect immediately, freezing scheduled cuts to Freehold Regional for the upcoming school year and allowing the district to restore courtesy busing.

Freehold Regional Superintendent Dr. Charles Sampson joined Gopal in praising the legislation’s passage.

“I want to thank Senator Vin Gopal and Senator Declan O’Scanlon for getting this bi-partisan bill passed, which will end school funding cuts for model regional school districts like Freehold Regional,” Sampson said.

“This has been a long road and I want to thank all of the parents, students, and stakeholders who have advocated for this outcome, as the future of Freehold Regional looks very bright,” said Sampson, who himself is leaving the district this year for another position.

Manalapan Mayor Susan Cohen praised the legislators and the superintendent.

"It's terrific news and it was a team effort," she said. She added that Sampson has been a "champion" for the district throughout his tenure there.

The bi-partisan, $6.76 million legislation, S-3950, would bolster regional school district funding, and would encourage more regionalization of smaller districts, sponsors have said. The Assembly version of the bill is A5575.

It was introduced earlier this spring. Senate Education Chair Gopal and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-19th District, announced the legislation. O'Scanlon was a co-sponsor.

Budget constraints under a state equalization bill, S2, that reduced state aid to "overfunded" districts left the regional district with no choice but to cut courtesy busing within a 2.5-mile radius of the district's six high schools in the budget for the next school year.

The regional district, the largest in Monmouth County, with offices in Manalapan, serves more than 10,000 students in six high schools: Manalapan, Marlboro, Howell, Freehold Borough, Freehold Township and Colts Neck high schools.

State aid decreases since 2018 to equalize state funding under the state S2 bill have squeezed the district budget for years, Superintendent Charles Sampson has said.