Wall School Board Adopts $68M Budget

The Board of Education on Tuesday unanimously approved the budget for the upcoming school year following a presentation by administrators and a public hearing at a special meeting held at the Intermediate School. 

The vote to adopt the budget was 8-0. Board member Donald Herbert, who was present prior to the start of the meeting, left the building before the board was called to order. He did not return. No explanation was given for his absence.

The vote followed about an hour-long presentation by district administrators that varied little from the presentation given on Monday. Some budget numbers were changed slightly from Monday’s presentation, but  those changes were largely insignificant.

The $68,462,470 total budget comes with just shy of a 3-cent tax increase and is supported by a $58,578,533 tax levy – an increase of $281,842 or .48 percent.

The tax rate of about $1.64 cents of each $100 of assessed property value is up from about $1.61 cents last year, is 2.9-cents higher under the proposed budget -- an increase of 1.8 percent.

On a home assessed at $302,000, the township average, the school tax bill would be about $4,956 under the new spending plan, up from about $4,868 under last year’s budget, an increase of about $88.

The school budget is one slice of the tax bill pie. Municipal, county, fire district and in some locations, library and open space taxes are also included in a homeowner’s property tax bill.

The budget includes the addition of a pre-engineering academy at the high school, additional technology purchases, significant security improvements and changes to the special education program, among other changes, officials said.

“To be able still update the safety precautions at each school, add a pre-engineering academy at the high school, to move forward in other educational initiatives, including the needed staff and improve technology, I think this group did a wonderful job,’’ board member John Tavis said.