On Monday, April 21, NJDOE Commissioner Kevin Dehmer testified before the Assembly Budget Committee concerning the education components of Governor Murphy’s proposed budget for FY 2026. As is typically the case, he testified alongside Manny Da Silva, chief executive officer of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority. The video recording of the hearing is available on the Legislature’s website.
In his testimony and responses to committee members’ questions, Dehmer covered the overarching themes of this year’s budget proposal along with new changes and additions to preK-12 school funding, including the new Tax Levy Incentive Aid program, caps on increases and decreases in year-over-year state aid, and changes to special education funding.
Budget committees in both houses of the Legislature will continue meeting with heads of cabinet departments over the next month and are constitutionally mandated to approve an appropriations bill for the governor’s signature by June 30. Commissioner Dehmer and CEO Da Silva will also testify before the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee on Tuesday, May 13. These committees previously held public hearings in March and April; the NJSBA provided verbal testimony and submitted written testimony to each committee.
Finally, the Office of Legislative Services also released its analysis of the education section of the proposed budget. This analysis and other documents related to the governor’s spending plan published on the Legislature’s website dive into the specifics of the proposal and is a helpful resource for those interested in learning more details.
The full fiscal year 2026 Budget in Brief can be found on the Office of Management and Budget’s website. The NJDOE’s 2025-2026 state aid notices can be found on NJDOE’s website. Information related to legislative deliberations on the budget, including analyses published by the Office of Legislative Services and testimony submitted by department heads, is available on the State Legislature’s website. The NJSBA covered the education highlights of the budget proposal in a previous edition of School Board Notes and will continue to provide updates on the budget development process as details become available.
