The bill mandates the Commissioner of Education to implement new procedures for preliminary State school aid notices and school district budgets, while also establishing the New Jersey Education Funding Portal. Starting with the 2026-2027 school year, the commissioner is required to provide each school district with a preliminary State aid notice by the end of the first week in December, detailing the minimum amount of State aid for the upcoming school year. Additionally, the commissioner must notify districts of the projected Statewide property value rate and income rate used in calculating local shares for the following year. The bill also modifies existing provisions related to the notification of maximum aid amounts and adequacy budgets, enhancing the calculation of local shares for school districts and improving transparency in the distribution of state aid.

Moreover, the bill amends several sections of current law, including the requirement for the State Board of Education to review and update core curriculum content standards every five years. It specifies that the base per pupil amount and other funding metrics will be adjusted based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the two school years following the applicable report. The legislation introduces a requirement for the Legislature to adopt a concurrent resolution if it disagrees with any part of the Educational Adequacy Report, ensuring legislative oversight of educational funding decisions. The establishment of the New Jersey Education Funding Portal will provide public access to data and calculations related to state school aid, allowing users to adjust inputs and see potential impacts on funding, while also enabling districts facing aid reductions to submit and revise their budgets within a specified timeframe after the state budget is enacted.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 18A:7F-5, 18A:7F-46, 18A:7F-52