$152M School Budget Approved In Morristown With Tax Increase For Some

MORRISTOWN, NJ — The Morris School District Board of Education unanimously passed its $152,250,450 budget for 2023–24 at its Monday night meeting.

Morristown's new budget will result in some tax relief for the typical homeowner. The average homeowner will pay about $36 less per year in school taxes for a home valued at $357,595 on average.

On the other hand, residents of the township will pay an extra $165 in annual school taxes, or about $14 more each month, if their home is valued at the $560,500 municipal average, officials said.

According to representatives of the school district, the tax levy will rise by 2 percent for the following academic year. The local tax levy provides almost 67 percent of the funding, with the state and federal governments contributing 17 percent each.

Overall, state funding is increasing by more than $1 million this year.

Under Gov. Phil Murphy's 2023–24 budget, the Morris School District received $9,133,936 in state funding, which represents an increase of 13.63 percent from what it received in 2022-23.

This year's budget allocates 81.5 percent of the budget to instructional costs, 9.8 percent to facilities, 3.8 percent to school administration and 2.1 percent to business.

Among the anticipated district plans are revamped bilingual and language arts literacy programs for the K–12 system, as well as a district-wide automated lockdown system as a high-priority security enhancement.

Capital projects that are planned for the coming years include $7.7 million for Woodland School renovations, $1.4 million for Morristown High School's new lights and scoreboard and more than $1 million for soil remediation at the Alexander Hamilton School.

Last August, the Morris School District submitted plans for proposed new athletic field lighting at 50 Early Street, as well as a new electronic scoreboard at the football field, to the town planning board for review and recommendation.

According to school officials, the addition of lights will allow for night games, practices, and band rehearsals. An LED scoreboard will also be installed at the western end of the field to replace the one behind the east-side goalposts.

To view the full budget presentation, click here.