As many of you know, I have litigated for change in the school funding formula for over a decade. B’zchus ha’rabbim the Court has found that our district is underfunded, effectively making Lakewood what is called an Abbott district. I urge all citizens to vote for the Fixing the Formula candidates for the Lakewood Board of Education on the top three rows of the school board section of the ballot.
Fixing the formula will IY”H stabilize our public finances into the next century. Fixing the formula will bring more funding to help all the students in the district and alleviate transportation costs. Fixing the formula will enable us to build an infrastructure of opportunity and an engine of growth for all of Lakewood.
By way of example, currently, Newark with 54,000 K-12 students receives $944 million in state equalization aid. Lakewood, with roughly the same number of students, receives $15 million in state equalization aid. The discrepancy is because the funding formula does not count the tremendous amount of nonpublic school students for whom the district is mandated to provide transportation and special education services, costing about $100 million a year.
To make up for the shortage in aid, last year the BOE borrowed from the state $100 million, increasing our total debt to $300 million. To put that in perspective, since our entire school tax levy is just $100 million, the encumbrance upon every taxable property in Lakewood is three times the school tax of a single year. There is no end in sight to this mess.
Why does who serves on the BOE matter? The BOE takes care of a $400 million budget. Most of your local taxes go to the BOE.
The “Fixing the Formula” candidates support our court victory. There is still work that must be done as the litigation continues.
Please vote for Avrohom Schubert, Mordechai Lang, and Eli Eisenbach, dedicated to fixing the school funding formula and working for the students and taxpayers.
Aaron Lang
Educator/Attorney at Law
What's the other side of this? Why is the current board not on board? I understand that we could conjecture that they are evil monsters, but I would assume that it's not so black and white. If anyone has actual info on this please explain. Not guessing or judging. Actual info.
ReplyDeleteSo you have clear data on one side, and 'probably not so black and white' on the other.
DeleteMeanwhile, in the history of Lakewood, not one elected official has ever done something that the public gained from. They do favors for 'the Yeshiva', for this institution and that, but the general public is never the recipient of any benefit from these people. Why would you think the BOE incumbents are any different.
When someone tells the BOE, "Here's a billion dollars for the district," you don't just sit there quietly at public meetings with no discussion of the matter, particularly when the organization you supervise puts up obstacles and opposes. That is a violation of the public trust, to say the least, if not downright cowardice at the expense of the public. AL
DeleteWhy won't AL or these concerned candidates show up at a BOE meeting to discuss this publicly?
DeleteNot my job. I am getting the job done. The BOE is represented by legal counsel. I am only allowed to go through legal counsel. I communicated with Mr. Harrison, Esq. and Mr. Zitomer, Esq. when I needed discovery from the administration. I am not privy nor do I care what the current general counsel has advised as to why he represented an adversarial position to me. This is what the Rabbi weisberg of the Vaad on July 7, 2014 emailed to all the Igud and BOE members:
Delete"Mosdos – this this our hope for long-discussed formula change. Signed, sealed and delivered. If we can’t get our own BOE and Township behind it, then we really blew it and should all hand in our resignations…"
They blew it.
None of the real boe businesses conducted at the meeting, it's all conducted behind closed doors
DeleteThere is no other side. The politicians have been trying for almost 30 years to get a "carve-out." They know that nothing will happen without a court order. That is how NJ works. The BOE went to court in 2002 and lost. I think if you asked them privately they will tell you they are 100% behind me. The problem is that the BOE flip-flopped, and took an opposite stance court starting in 2017. They submitted papers asking the judge to dismiss because funding is a matter for the legislature. This is public record. I have no idea why they did that but they lost anyway. If you really want to know about the workings of the BOE, read the Booker report that came out on March 1, 2024. You all know what I have been writing. I do not want to point out their incompetence on this blog. AL
ReplyDeleteHere is a link to the March 1, 2024 report:
ReplyDeletehttps://arthur2240.ipage.com/documents/Comprehensive%20Review%20of%20the%20LPSD%202024.pdf
The most important part for Lakewood stakeholders is "Financial Transparency" at the bottom page 2. Anyone who has watched a BOE knows that there is little or no deliberation. As for the BOE's exceptions to the trial judge finding that the state is not providing a thorough and efficient education in Lakewood (a major victory that has not happened for any district since Abbott v. Burke in 1990) see:
https://arthur2240.ipage.com/documents/BOEExceptions.pdf
This is all old news. I can't even begin to explain what was in the 2,000 plus pages of exhibits and testimony that state entered at trial, including $10 million spent from 2014-18 to cover for simple mistakes made before 2014 that the commissioner caught (pashut errors in special education placements in unapproved schools) because the candidates don't want a negative campaign.
It seems like they dont want to rock the boat in the state. That would be good if we the taxpayers were doing great but the truth is we owe 300 million and pay state monitors 400k . It is time for a change a get things done for the oilam and vote the first three candidates
ReplyDeleteI think you are right because of that story with the governor supposedly telling the Lakewood power brokers that he was opposed to the case. Well, Yea, Mr. Little bossy, what did you think? Of course he opposes. His commissioner and DOE are the defendants. So what?
DeleteThe question is not whether you are with the governor or not. The governor also should be on the side of the parents and children of Lakewood. If fact, this should have never had to be in court, and certainly not dragged out for over a decade.
The first three on the ballot will represent the taxpayers who will the others represent? did they issue any statement?
ReplyDeleteWe all have a choice , the status quo that is obviously not working wioth the BOE in debt 300 million and transportaition costs going up. Years ago nobody paid for school transportation or vopte the foirst three candiates who will represent us the taxpayers
ReplyDeleteAnd there is a choice for Township committee too.
DeleteSo why is Weisberg able to get his message out to vote for the other candidates while no one is hearing Lang's true and simple message to vote for fixing the formula? Why can't we have good PR??
ReplyDeleteBecause most of lakewood media is bought off and paid. They are coorrupt like the dor Hamabul. Askanim took care of the media outlets owners by giving them perks and money in order to control them
DeleteWell put.& every askan can claim when it serves them,who me?! My part was pa'chos m'gezel.Like dor hanabul
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