Wimberly on Budget Reports Received from OLS and State Treasurer Thursday

(TRENTON) – Assembly Budget panel member, Assemblyman Benjie E. Wimberly (D-Bergen, Passaic) has issued the following statement after today’s remote hearing:

“The reality is that there will be a major impact on schools, on funding and on facilities, in the next few years. There’s a lot to consider in response to the COVID-19 emergency as we prepare to define what education will now look like in the fall for students—keeping in mind social distancing and safety procedures in our classrooms.

    “Cities like Paterson have been doing more with less for decades given degrading facilities, teacher shortages and major decreases in funding over the years. The current health care crisis has added to these pervasive education issues by also putting pressure on the work we have done to address outlying community concerns such as hunger, and giving students a safe place to go with school activities. This pandemic has also shone a bright light on the broad and deep digital divide between urban communities and others throughout the state. These are concerns we will need to address and continue to talk about as we move forward.

    “We are in the beginning stages of receiving feedback and input on this fiscal year and next. We’re looking forward to the continuing the dialog.”