The four joint legislative committees charged with exploring property tax reform are soliciting input from experts and the public during their October meetings.

Government Consolidation and Shared Services –Circle Oct. 18th on your calendar. That’s D-Day on the issue of school district consolidation. The committee will hear testimony from NJSBA and other organizations on school district regionalization and consolidation of their functions on the county level. The Oct. 18 meeting will start at 10 a.m. in Committee Room 11, 4th Floor, State House Annex in Trenton.

Public School Funding Reform – The panel scheduled two public hearings this month on school funding. One session took place on Oct. 10 in Collingswood. A second hearing will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 17 at 2 p.m. at the Atrium, Campus Center, New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark. Lawmakers on the committee have indicated that it will develop new school funding legislation by Thanksgiving.

Public Employee Benefits Reform – On Oct. 12, the panel was scheduled to hear testimony from NJSBA and other invited participants on measures to reduce and contain costs related to state and local pension, health and other employee benefits.

Constitutional Reform and Citizens Property Tax Convention – The committee continued discussion this week on spending caps to contain the growth in government operating costs.  

Many legislators have referred to a November 15th deadline for the introduction of bills to address the issues confronting the panels.

For information, visit NJSBA's Special Sessions Resources online.