New School Construction Bill Becomes Law

New School Construction Bill Becomes Law

On the day before the state Legislature adjourned for summer break, it passed A-2873, which authorized the Schools Development Authority (SDA) to borrow $3.9 billion for school construction projects in the state.

Of the total amount, $2.9 billion is to be allocated to the former Abbott school districts—or, as the law refers to them, “SDA districts.” The other $1 billion will go to all other school districts.

The bill is a successor law to the state’s Education Facilities Construction and Financing Act of 2000, but there are some substantial differences:

Projects Will Be Prioritized The law indicates that in non-SDA districts, the education commissioner shall “establish a priority process for the financing of school facilities projects…” These priorities will most likely be set through regulations.

Audits May Be Required Another provision of the law requires that in any school facilities project in which the state’s financial contribution is more than $10 million, the SDA, in consultation with the state comptroller, shall have an audit. However, at the discretion of the SDA or comptroller, audits may be required for projects below the $10 million threshold.

Vocational Districts to Get Funding The law allocates $50 million to construction projects in county vocational schools. However, those schools that had not previously received construction funding under the Education Facilities Construction and Financing Act of 2000 will be given priority to receive funding. NJSBA estimates that only three county schools —Atlantic, Essex and Mercer—fall into this category. Other districts could still be eligible for funding. The governor is expected to sign A-2873 on July 9

NJSBA is a member of Building Our Children’s Future, a coalition of education and business organizations that strongly advocated for the administration and the Legislature to provide educational facilities funding to both Abbott and non-Abbott school districts. “We’re delighted that the Governor and the Legislature made school construction funding a priority,” said Marie S. Bilik, executive director of NJSBA, “many districts will now be able to address serious problems with their facilities.”