Capitol Watch: Spring 2026
View below to see the NJSBA Capitol Watch Newsletter roundup of education-related legislation advancing in Trenton and our Association’s positions.
Scroll down to read the entire listing of education-related legislation NJSBA monitored this quarter; to go to a specific topic, click on the appropriate topic category button below. This quarter’s newsletter also features a recap of the FY27 state budget proposal.
To view the full text of any of the bills summarized below, please visit the New Jersey Legislature’s website.
Board Governance and Elections
No activity this quarter! Check back in Summer 2026.
Curriculum and Instruction
S-3462 | Seeking Amendments
Summary Requires high school students to receive financial literacy instruction.
Sponsors Sen. Gopal (D11), Sen. McKnight (D31)
Status Approved by the Senate Education Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
Notes The NJSBA provided verbal testimony.
S-1106 | Monitoring
Summary Establishes “STEM Curriculum Grant Program” for certain school districts; makes appropriation.
Sponsors Sen. Cruz-Perez (D5)
Status Approved by the Senate Education Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
S-1343 | Monitoring
Summary Permits students to be eligible for high school graduation credits in health, safety, and physical education upon completion of a county fire academy course under certain circumstances.
Sponsors Sen. Pennacchio (R26), Sen. Bucco (R25)
Status Approved by the Senate Education Committee.
School Funding
A-4678/S-3614 | Monitoring
Summary Clarifies payments for non-resident students enrolled in renaissance school projects.
Sponsors Asm. Greenwald (D6), Asm. Spearman (D5)
Status Passed in Assembly 72-0-0; approved by the Senate Education Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
S-1807 | Support & Seeking Amendments
Summary Requires municipalities to share certain payments in lieu of property taxes with school districts; informs counties, school districts, and DCA of certain information related to property tax exemptions and abatements.
Sponsors Sen. Singleton (D7), Sen. Wimberly (D35)
Status Approved by the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
Notes The NJSBA provided verbal testimony.
School Security
A-1323 | Support
Summary Requires boards of education and boards of trustees to adopt policy on use of surveillance systems with artificial intelligence capabilities.
Sponsors Asm. Miller (D4), Asm. Kearney (D21)
Status Passed in Assembly 78-1-0.
Special Education
No activity this quarter! Check back in Summer 2026.
Staffing and Labor Issues
S-1631 | Monitoring
Summary Prohibits discrimination on basis of height or weight under “Law Against Discrimination.”
Sponsors Sen. Zwicker (D16), Sen. McKnight (D31)
Status Passed in Senate 24-14.
A-1161 | Oppose
Summary Requires employers to include in job posting whether posting is for existing position and sets additional job posting requirements.
Sponsors Asm. Danielsen (D17), Asw. Speight (D29)
Status Approved by the Assembly Labor Committee and referred to the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee.
Notes The NJSBA submitted written testimony.
S-2962 | Monitoring
Summary Provides seniority service credit to educational support professionals for military service.
Sponsors Sen. Mukherji (D32), Sen. Amato (R9)
Status Approved by the Senate Higher Education Committee and referred to the Senate Education Committee.
S-533 | Monitoring
Summary Concerns training of employees about access to public facilities for individuals with service or guide dogs.
Sponsors Sen. Beach (D6), Sen. Bucco (R25)
Status Approved by the Senate Labor Committee and referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
S-2689 | Monitoring
Summary Requires employer to provide certain accommodations to employee who is breast feeding.
Sponsors Sen. Timberlake (D34), Sen. Ruiz (D29)
Status Approved by the Senate Labor Committee and referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
S-1374 | Oppose
Summary Requires local boards of education to employ certain number of school psychologists.
Sponsors Sen. Lagana (D38), Sen. Corrado (R40)
Status Approved by the Senate Education Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
Notes The NJSBA provided verbal testimony.
S-1376 | Monitoring
Summary Requires public schools that offer student psychological services to offer remote sessions.
Sponsors Sen. Lagana (D38), Sen. Corrado (R40)
Status Approved by the Senate Education Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
Student Health and Safety
S-1370/A-1514 | Support
Summary Requires new flooring for schools, community centers, and child care centers to be certified mercury-free.
Sponsors Sen. Lagana (D38), Sen. Mukherji (D32) / Asm. Calabrese (D36), Asm. Stanley (D18), Asm. Danielsen (D17)
Status Passed in Senate 38-0; passed in Assembly 73-0-0; awaiting governor’s signature.
A-3882 | Support
Summary Requires public schools to post link to subsidized school meals application, and certain informational videos related to application, in prominent place on Internet website.
Sponsors Asm. Coughlin (D19), Asw. Quijano (D20), Asm. Hutchison (D4)
Status Passed in Assembly 73-0-0.
A-2195 | Support
Summary Directs DOH to develop guidelines for school districts and institutions of higher education concerning student vaping awareness campaigns.
Sponsors Asw. Speight (D29), Asw. Reynolds-Jackson (D15), Asw. Murphy (D7)
Status Passed in Assembly 72-0-0.
S-155 | Support
Summary Permits school bus driver to administer epinephrine to student in emergency under certain circumstances.
Sponsors Sen. Diegnan (D18), Sen. Beach (D6)
Status Approved by the Senate Education Committee.
S-1123 | Express Concerns
Summary Requires portable anti-choking devices be placed in schools.
Sponsors Sen. Corrado (R40), Sen. Space (R24)
Status Approved by the Senate Education Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
Notes The NJSBA provided verbal testimony.
A-2050 | Monitoring
Summary Prohibits certain substances in sale, distribution, and manufacture of commercial foods for human consumption; bans certain substances in school food.
Sponsors Asw. Haider (D37), Asw. Reynolds-Jackson (D15), Asm. Bhalla (D32)
Status Approved by the Assembly Children, Families and Food Security Committee and referred to the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee.
Transportation
A-3887 | Support
Summary Authorizes use of school bus monitoring systems; establishes certain enforcement procedures and penalties for certain violations captured by school bus monitoring systems.
Sponsors Asm. Karabinchak (D18), Asm. Stanley (D18), Asw. Haider (D37), Asw. Katz (D8)
Status Approved by the Assembly Education Committee and referred to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
Miscellaneous
S-2457 | Support
Summary Permits excused absence for students participating in college visits, visits to postsecondary technical institutions, and military recruitment-related activities.
Sponsors Sen. Bucco (R25), Sen. Bramnick (R21)
Status Passed in Senate 38-0.
Notes The NJSBA submitted written testimony.
S-1773 | Support
Summary Requires school report card to include information about placement of graduates, including apprenticeships.
Sponsors Sen. Singleton (D7), Sen. McKnight (D31)
Status Passed in Senate 38-0.
S-1815 | Support
Summary Establishes solar energy grant program in BPU to provide grants to public schools for solar energy projects; appropriates $15 million.
Sponsors Sen. Singleton (D7)
Status Approved by the Senate Environment and Energy Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
A-1732 | Support
Summary Appropriates $3 million annually to Freedom Schools in New Jersey using funds collected under Social Equity Excise Fee.
Sponsors Asw. Reynolds-Jackson (D15), Asw. Carter (D22)
Status Approved by the Assembly Education Committee and referred to the Assembly Community Development and Women’s Affairs Committee.
S-3593 | Support
Summary “New Jersey Works Act” permits businesses to apply for tax credits for establishing approved pre-employment and work readiness training programs in partnership with schools, nonprofit organizations, or educational institutions.
Sponsors Sen. Beach (D6), Sen. Singleton (D7)
Status Approved by the Senate Labor Committee and referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.
FY27 State Budget Proposal
On Tuesday, March 10, 2026, Governor Mikie Sherrill delivered her inaugural budget address to the Legislature. Sherrill’s $60.7 billion proposed FY27 budget includes $12.4 billion in K-12 formula aid – an increase of $372.1 million (3.1 percent) from the current fiscal year. Altogether, including formula aid, Preschool Education Aid, state payments on behalf of school districts, and other forms of school aid, the governor’s proposed FY27 budget would increase pre-K to 12 education aid by 1 percent, to $22.5 billion. Funding for public education accounts for over 35 percent of the total proposed budget.
As with any budget year, the Legislature still needs to consider and approve a final budget for the governor to sign by June 30. The items included in the proposed budget, listed below, are therefore all subject to legislative approval.
Formula Funding
The proposed FY27 budget includes $12.4 billion in formula aid – an increase of over $370 million from FY26. The governor’s proposal continues efforts to enhance predictability and reduce volatility for school districts, by, for example: 1) maintaining a three percent cap on year-to-year decreases in state aid and a six percent cap on increases for the four main categories of state aid (equalization, special education, security, and transportation); 2) calculating special education aid based on special education enrollment, rather than the census-based method; and 3) utilizing multi-year averages for property wealth and income when calculating a district’s local share. The proposed budget states the administration’s intent to “undertak[e] the important, long-term work of modernizing the current formula to reflect today’s educational needs better and ensure a fair, sustainable approach to school funding in the coming years.”
Increased Preschool Aid
The proposed FY27 budget includes $1.38 billion in Preschool Education Aid, a 9.3 percent increase over FY26, and sets asides funds to support new districts.
New Initiatives
In an attempt to increase funding transparency, the NJDOE will develop user-friendly dashboards and mapping tools on its website that explain the school funding formula and how its allocations change each year.
In the Budget in Brief issued along with the budget message, the Sherrill Administration acknowledges that school districts have “recently experienced and reported fiscal strain due to inflationary pressures and other stressors.” To address this dynamic, the proposed budget also includes increased resources for the NJDOE dedicated to oversight, technical assistance, and early detection of financial distress to help improve district fiscal accountability and support districts navigating financial challenges.
Fulfilling one of her campaign promises, Gov. Sherrill has proposed $125,000 for the Office of Youth Online Mental Health Safety and Awareness, created by Executive Order No. 6. The office will provide research and recommendations on responsible social media use among youth. The proposed budget also includes $500,000 for developing a Social Media Research Center.
Other Initiatives
The proposed budget includes a number of other education-related funding initiatives, including:
- Flat funding for Extraordinary Special Education Aid ($420 million).
- $15 million for high-impact tutoring, doubling the amount from last year. Additionally, the Sherrill Administration “will continue to advance other evidence-based programs through the Department of Education to improve third-grade literacy and bring kids back up to speed.”
- Working-Class Families Anti-Hunger Act funding to provide 21,000 schoolchildren with free school meals.
- School facilities: Following the schedule established in FY2023, $350 million will be made available to the Schools Development Authority (SDA) for current construction projects, and an additional $50 million in appropriations will support capital grants in SDA districts.
- $33 million for the first year of School-based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK), a new youth mental health statewide initiative to expand mental health services in K-12 schools and help students with complex, high-acuity needs. SPARK will shift services currently provided through NJ4S, which the Administration plans to sunset, and reinvest those funds into high-acuity services through the NJDOE.
- A $1 million increase in funding for the Local Efficiency Achievement Program (LEAP), bringing total proposed FY27 funding to $3 million. LEAP grants, administered by the NJ Department of Community Affairs, assist local government bodies, including school districts, in exploring and establishing shared services.
Next Steps
Throughout April and May, both the Senate and General Assembly will hold a series of committee hearings to allow the public, executive branch agency heads and other stakeholders to weigh in on the governor’s proposal. The NJSBA provided verbal testimony and submitted written testimony to each house’s budget committee. The Legislature will ultimately introduce, discuss and pass a fiscal year 2027 budget bill for the governor’s signature in advance of the June 30, 2026, constitutional deadline.
The NJSBA will continue to provide updates on the budget development process as details become available. Additional resources can be found below:
- FY2027 Budget in Brief
- FY2027 Full Detailed Budget
- NJDOE’s 2026-2027 state aid notices
- Budget testimony from NJDOE Commissioner Laux
- Office of Legislative Services (OLS) analysis of education portion of the proposed budget
- NJDOE’s responses to OLS’ budget questions
