Murphy Signs Measure Overhauling New Jersey’s School-Funding Law

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has signed legislation that will revamp the state’s school-funding formula.

The measure will redistribute school aid among districts and require tax hikes in some communities. Proponents say it will help give the state’s 577 districts the funding they need to provide better education for all students.

The Democratic governor signed the measure Tuesday at an elementary school in Cliffside Park, calling it “long overdue.” The legislation modifies the current school funding law to eliminate adjustment aid as well as state aid growth caps and allows adjustments to tax growth limitations for certain school districts.

The law envisions a redistribution of aid over seven years from districts with shrinking enrollment or growing tax bases to those with booming populations and large numbers of high-need students.