Dunn Introduces School Aid Fix for Highlands Towns

2/25/2026

Assemblywoman Aura Dunn (R-Morris) is heeding that call by introducing her “Clean Water Promise Package” to stabilize school funding and provide relief to that region.

“When school funding gets cut, kids lose, and Highlands towns are paying the price,” Dunn said. “These districts get short-changed when it comes to school funding. They’re doing more for the entire state and being given less in return. It’s not fair, and it has to change.”

Dunn is drafting legislation that would establish a new category of school state aid called Highlands Region Support Aid, which will compensate for losses in property tax revenue resulting from diminished property values because of development restrictions.

The Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act (2004) restricts development in 88 municipalities to protect the abundant natural resources of the region that supplies clean drinking water throughout the state. The School Funding Reform Act of 2008, amended a decade later by S2, promised to adequately fund the nearly 600 school districts in New Jersey. Together, the laws have created what local families call a “death spiral” for districts, which have resorted to program and staff cuts, and above-cap tax increases.

For instance, so-called equitable funding has left a cumulative $45 million state aid deficit in Jefferson Township Schools’ budget. While Jefferson gets the bulk of any media attention, districts across Bergen, Passaic, Morris, Sussex, Warren, Somerset and Hunterdon counties have experienced similar cuts.

This year, Jefferson is facing a $4.8 million budget shortfall. Dunn is seeking a supplemental appropriation (A4456) to close that gap.

“It has baffled so many of my colleagues in the Legislature and myself that districts like Jefferson are considered over-funded, yet must resort to closing and selling off school buildings, and cut programs, extracurriculars and staff to balance budgets year after year,” Dunn said. “Further cuts simply cannot be made without jeopardizing our children’s futures.”

The Assemblywoman is also asking the Legislature to adopt her resolution (ACR126) that calls for the 2008 school funding law to be revised to eliminate significant school aid reductions, especially in Highlands districts and other areas where development is restricted.

“The Highlands’ unique situation demands special action from the state to ensure we protect our natural resources and fulfill our obligations to all New Jersey students,” Dunn said.