School Budget Vote: Sounds like the fix is in.
This is the biggest financial decision made in Ridgewood every year. Voters should be asked to give their approval. If this role is eliminated, the gulf in perspective and priorities between Ridgewood residents on the one hand, and the Ridgewood school district and its safely-ensconced bureaucrats on the other, already large, will only widen, much to our disadvantage.
Voting to approve or disapprove of our school budget in Ridgewood is the essence of local self-government. This has always has been a strong NJ tradition and now is no time to discard it. It is also reasonable to view BOE trustees as the agents of the voters and taxpayers in Ridgewood, much as the some of the existing trustees may tend to cringe at that description.
Accordingly, the BOE trustees should not be permitted to give themselves the final word in whether or how to spend 80+ million dollars annually or to increase spending YOY versus holding the line if financial circumstances warrant and the taxpayers are strapped. BOE trustees, this resident asks that you maintain the status quo on the Ridgewood school district’s annual budget vote. Ridgewood residents need that authority and the BOE trustees don’t need to tinker with it!
Ridgewood is one of the last remaining districts in the state to keep an April vote. Don’t be surprised if the Governor steps in and mandates a change to November.
my question is this….
why can’t they move the vote to november AND move the budget vote then? the only reason those other districts moved their vote was so they could dispense with the budget vote.
it seems like we could/should keep the vote. i know it obviously has little impact but it certainly is at least symbolic. we can blatantly see when the will of the voters is overridden by the VC/BOE.
-Thed.
#2, that’s not how the Governor spelled out the option back in January ’12. Another reason most districts moved to November was to eliminate or drastically reduce the cost of holding a standalone election in April.
the budget vote is very important. why should we just assume a 2% increase every year from now on? and the budget is not just about the increase but also about changes, cuts and reallocations. the april election is money well spent. also, the boe should expand to at least seven members since this five member board needs more voices to challenge the status quo. the smaller board allows for absolute control. i thought morgan supported a seven member board. what happened?
Morgan is laying down. All talk no action. Corporate blah blah blah. Out next election.