An additional $12.8 billion would be needed to complete the 300 construction projects on hold in the 31 Abbott districts, state education officials announced last week.

But holding off the projects would allow inflation to take its toll, according to the “Annual Report of the School Facilities Construction Program.” Ten years from now, completion of those same projects would cost approximately $29 billion.

The report was issued by the state Department of Education and the New Jersey Schools Construction Corporation (SCC), the agency created by the McGreevey Administration to manage Abbott school projects. Estimates are based on the districts’ 2000 long-range facility plans, and not on 2005 plans.

According to SDOE officials, the estimates would help lawmakers determine how to restore funding for the program, which was created to meet the state Supreme Court’s mandate in Abbott v. Burke. That decision required the state to pay the full cost of necessary school facility projects in the Abbott, or special needs, districts.

Future Priorities “…it is important to remember that this was one of the most ambitious public works projects ever undertaken in this state, and considerable progress has been made in New Jersey’s effort to invest in our children’s futures,” said acting Commissioner of Education Lucille E. Davy.

Going forward, Davy said that the priority for Abbott projects should be placed on adequate preschool facilities, followed by eliminating overcrowded classrooms and upgrading inadequate facilities.

Depletion of Fund The Educational Facilities Construction and Financing Act of 2000 created an $8.6 billion construction program, with $6 billion devoted to meeting the court’s construction mandate in the Abbott districts. The Abbott money has been spent or has been allocated, leaving 300 Abbott projects on hold. (The other $2.6 billion was set aside for up-front grants to offset bonding costs in non-Abbott districts. Those funds also expired this year.)

The rapid depletion of EFCFA funds and concerns about the SCC’s management of Abbott projects led to an investigation by the state’s Inspector General, who recommended numerous structural reforms at the agency. In addition, two weeks ago, Governor Corzine named a special counsel to monitor the SCC.

Last week’s report from the state Department of Education attributed the depletion of funds, in part, to outdated and incomplete cost estimates.

“When [EFCFA] was approved, the construction estimates were already too low because they were based on 1997 per-square-foot costs,” reads a department of education press statement. “Also, the estimates did not include costs for land acquisition and remediation, demolition, the relocation of homeowners, tenants and businesses, historic preservation, temporary classrooms and ‘swing space,’ and the creation of an additional Abbott district.”

Further Investigation Sought Meanwhile, three members of the Assembly Education Committee called on Governor Corzine to appoint a special prosecutor to identify any illegal activity that might have taken place at the SCC. Such action is necessary before any additional funding is provided for the construction program, according to Assemblymen Joseph Malone (R-30), David Wolfe (R-10) and Bill Baroni (R-14).

The lawmakers also said they plan to introduce legislation to authorize an investigation into the agency, a newspaper article reported.

Stronger Safeguards Assembly speaker Joe Roberts, meanwhile, stressed that placing controls on the program would ensure its fiscal integrity in the future.

 “High-quality classroom facilities are critical if all New Jersey children are to receive the best education possible,” he said. “It will be difficult to provide a new wave of construction funding until efforts are undertaken to account for previous expenditures and stronger safeguards are put in place to ensure that future construction dollars are not wasted.”