The New Jersey Department of Education readopted the accountability regulations, effective Nov. 25. There are several notable changes in the readopted regulations; highlights are below. The regulations:
- Permit the promotions of relatives already employed in the district, as well as the hiring of relatives with Executive County Superintendent (ECS) approval under narrow circumstances.
- Remove the obligation of the ECS to study consolidation of pre-K or K-12 operating districts that are not regional districts.
- Revise the provision that all school boards should establish a list of specific procedures for the use of legal counsel. That requirement no longer pertains to all boards, but only those that have legal costs exceeding 130 percent of the statewide average (unless the district can show that use of the procedures would not result in a reduction in costs).
- Require the ECS plan for the consolidation of non-operating districts to stipulate the non-op be combined with the district that causes the “least disruption” on education, operation and finances, with the current receiving district being the presumptive choice. The regulations also designate additional information to be included in the plan, including the distribution/liquidation of any assets. In addition, the readopted regulations also permit the ECS to consider alternative approaches to the allocation of property taxes, state aid, and the new resulting board of education, but only if/until the approaches are authorized by statute.
- Increase the number of students a district may have in order to be eligible to seek a waiver of the requirements to maximize Medicaid revenue. Previously a district needed 30 or fewer projected Medicaid-eligible classified students to request a waiver. Under the readopted regulations a district now may have up to 40 such students.
- Revise the obligation to solicit quotes for light meals and refreshments at board meetings.
- Require that in obtaining a waiver for in-state overnight travel, the sponsoring organization must demonstrate that the scheduling of the event necessitates that it be held on multiple consecutive days with overnight lodging.
- Revise the information that must be in a travel request.
- Elaborate on the procedures following voter defeat of a district’s proposed budget.
The department received comments on the proposed readoption from 274 individuals and organizations during the comment period that ended on Aug. 14. There were also six public testimony sessions and three public hearings during that period. The New Jersey School Boards Association was among the groups commenting. The comments, as well as the department’s responses, are published in the Dec. 21 New Jersey Register.
Watch School Board Notes for continuing information about the readopted regulations.
Readers may access the readopted regulations as well as NJSBA’s comments, on the NJSBA Web site.
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