The Evesham Township Board of Education has submitted a 2026-’27 school budget that includes a preliminary tax increase of 2% to offset state aid cuts.
The school district has faced those cuts since 2018, when New Jersey’s S2 Act was enacted. It resulted in less aid to more than 300 state districts and realigned aid with enrollment and local tax capacity. The state formula is intended to redistribute money to districts with rising enrollment and lower funding levels.
In Evesham, that has resulted in cumulative aid cuts of $38 million since 2019.
The district’s business administrator and board secretary Jonathan Yates explained that the proposed budget is subject to change. But while the district was required to submit the financial plan to the county, the board remains divided on it.
“It’s called tentative, (because while) the board will be submitting (the budget) to meet our statutory requirement to submit (it) to the county for review,” Yates added, “the board still has the ability to make changes. The board as a whole would like to spend more time working on certain aspects of this budget.”
The budget’s preliminary local tax levy is expected to equal up to $90.6 million of $102.2 million in anticipated revenue, a $1.7 million increase from 2025-’26. State aid is $7.5 million, followed by miscellaneous revenue – including interest accrued on school bank accounts and rent from leased space – at $2.2 million.
For the average assessed home in Evesham, the tax would be $89.39 for the year, or $7.45 a month.
Yates said the district anticipates $700,000 of Extraordinary Aid from the state, the same amount it received last year.
“(Extraordinary Aid) is aid that is received after the budget year is over,” he noted. “(The district) applies for it to (fund) … aid for certain services for special education that go above and beyond our district’s requirement to provide.”
Yates also pointed out that the state can change its calculation on funding districts at any time.
Among appropriations in the new school budget are: $54.9 million for staff salaries; $27.8 million for employee benefits and district costs; $7.1 million for transportation; $5.3 million for special education; $3.1 million for school operations; $1.7 million for curriculum, personnel and technology; $669,000 for clubs and activities (including advisor and coaching stipends); and $416,000 for discretionary spending.
Yates pointed out that the district’s expenditures continue to outpace revenues, an impediment to balancing the budget every year.
“Our expenses increase at a rate greater than our ability to generate revenues every single year,” he acknowledged.
For every tax dollar spent by the district, 75 to 80% goes to staff salaries and related benefits.
“A reduction in state aid and the S2 implementation forced this district to have to walk off a fiscal cliff by balancing their budget with one-time sources of revenue,” Yates revealed.
To view the full tentative 2026-’27 school budget, visit www.evesham.k12.nj.us/board_of_education.
