It can be done

[Neil Rossen]

Earthquake in New Jersey: Majority of School Budgets Defeated

In a crushing rejection of the thug tactics of the teacher's unions,
voters turned out in unusually high numbers Tuesday to reject a
majority of proposed school budgets across the state of New Jersey,
handing Governor Chris Christie a huge victory in his battle to help
close the deficit in the state budget. Despite a high-stakes stare
down and fear-mongering tactics by the unions, Christie emerges with
an even stronger hand.

Take a victory lap, Governor.
New Jersey voters took a stand on school spending and property taxes
Tuesday, rejecting 260 of 479 school budgets across 19 counties,
according to unofficial results in statewide school elections.

In the proposed state budget he unveiled last month, Gov. Chris
Christie slashed $820 million in aid to school districts and urged
voters to defeat budgets if teachers in their schools did not agree to
one-year wage freezes. The salvo ignited a heated debate with the
state’s largest teachers union.

Christie said the cuts were necessary to help plug an $11 billion
state budget gap.

In many districts Tuesday, the governor made himself heard as 54
percent of the spending plans were rejected, according to unofficial
returns. If the trend continues, it would mark the most budget defeats
in New Jersey since 1976, when 56 percent failed. Typically, voters
approve more than 70 percent of the school budgets.
Why it's historic! Unprecedented!
Key districts where budgets failed yesterday included Edison,
Parsippany, Bridgewater-Raritan and Woodbridge. Budgets passed in
Mountain Lakes, Piscataway, Livingston and Jersey City.

In wealthy Somerset County, voters defeated 15 of 17 spending plans;
in Hunterdon County, 23 of 28 budgets failed. In the governor’s
hometown, Mendham Township, the budget was narrowly approved.

Jeffrey Brookner, president of the Bridgewater-Raritan school board,
said "lots of factors played into the defeat. One of those factors is
the role that the governor played."

Voter turnout was also high in elections that typically draw little
interest. In Sparta, where turnout rivaled some presidential
elections, the budget was defeated by roughly a 3-to-1 margin. Sparta
teachers agreed to a one-year wage freeze late last week, but the
budget still called for a nearly 10 percent tax increase for residents
in the Sussex County community.
Cue the whining:
"I think the governor’s rhetoric hurt us. The governor dumping all of
the state issues on the local level hurt us," Superintendent Thomas
Morton said. "It’s going to be a long, hard road. We’ll start to work
tomorrow."

In towns where they failed, the budgets will now be presented to the
local governing body, which can cut or leave the spending plans as is.

Sparta Mayor Scott Seelagy said he wanted to analyze the budget before
commenting on where the council would look for cuts.

"The voters in Sparta have sent a very strong message about how they
feel about taxes," said Seelagy, who said he couldn’t recall the last
time a Sparta school budget had failed. "I think people voted with
their pocketbooks."
Indeed, we did. For decades we've seen runaway spending with no
concern for taxpayers. People are starting to realize these votes,
usually far under the radar held during the spring, have meaning as to
how much their property taxes are affected. At the same time residents
in this normally blue state are fed up with the unions and their goon
tactics. Just running around and exploiting children to line their
pockets isn't working any more. They fail to realize voters want their
children to be free of crushing debt for generations.

Since I live in a sane Republican district we voted for the best of
both worlds. A frozen budget that will actually bring us a decrease in
our property taxes.

As for those in largely Democratic districts that voted for increased
budgets, I don't want to hear any whining when your property taxes go
up again. You voted for it. Naturally, some are handling it with class
and dignity.


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