Late winter is often a quiet time. The hustle and bustle of the holiday season is over and the energy of springtime is still a few weeks away. However, the Pennsauken Board of Education has their biggest task of the year to complete during these late winter months: the 2015-2016 school budget.

Each year, the Pennsauken Board of Education, in accordance with state law, is required to review and approve the budget for the following school year. This budget process typically begins in late February and continues through mid-March. The Board of Education conducts a series of public meetings, during which our budget is reviewed. At these meetings, the Board, in conjunction with the superintendent and the business administrator, develops priorities for the upcoming school year. Through the development of priorities, the Board is able to highlight the areas of need in the district. Some of the areas of need that are addressed annually include facility improvements, the addition of staff, and perhaps most importantly, resources to improve student learning and achievement. Each expenditure and source of revenue is assessed in order to create a budget that addresses these needs so that the Pennsauken Board of Education is able to provide, in accordance with the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, a “thorough and efficient education” for all of the students of Pennsauken Township. The Board works diligently to complete this task while ensuring that we do not burden the residents and property owners of Pennsauken Township with needless tax increases.

Once the budget has been reviewed, the Board of Education has to vote to approve the first draft. The budget is then sent to the County Superintendent for final review. When the County Superintendent approves, the Board receives the budget once again and holds a final public hearing so that any member of the public with an interest in the schools can speak. Following the conclusion of the public hearing, the Board of Education will take its final vote. The final vote is to approve the budget so that it can be implemented beginning on July 1, which is the start of the fiscal year.

Residents may remember that several years ago the school budget was voted on in a special election every April by the public. Beginning in 2012, there was a change in state law that permitted school districts to approve budgets without a public vote as long as the budget did not exceed a 2 percent increase in taxes. For the last three years, the Board of Education stayed well below the 2 percent tax increase cap. So in recent history, the budget was implemented without being voted on by the residents of Pennsauken.

The budget process can seem complicated and overwhelming. However, it is a document of great importance to all of the residents and property owners of Pennsauken Township because it is through the residents’ tax dollars that we are able to fund our schools. Every member of Pennsauken Township, therefore, is encouraged to attend the public budget meetings and the public hearing on the budget. The dates of these meetings and the public hearing will be advertised on the Pennsauken School District website, in the Courier Post and in the Philadelphia Inquirer.