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Save the Date...Dec. 8 eNews
Improved Buildings... Successful Students...
Strong Community
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We continue to provide you with information regarding the referendum. We need you to come out as an informed voter on December 8. Please check out video segment 2! Save the date...December 8. Don't allow others to make the choice for your child. Come out and VOTE!

Remember save the date December 8!  We believe in transparency and will continue to provide you with all of the information relevant to the referendum in order for you to be an informed voter. We are adding another evening to give our community members a chance to ask questions about the referendum.  Come out Monday, November 30, 2015 at 6:30 P.M. in the Board of Education Conference Room.

Please use the question portal to submit your questions.

Liz
Save the date...December 8.  Be an informed voter. Don't allow others to make the decision for you. 
Referendum Website
We urge YOU to make a decision about your child's learning environment.  Please don't allow others to make the choice for you!  Your VOTE counts!

In recent  Falcon  Flyers you have seen information from the school district about the upcoming Referendum on  December 8. This is an important topic impacting our children.  We will host another evening to answer questions. Come out and meet with Interim Superintendent, Mary Ann Bell, for a discussion.
 
Monday, November 30, 2015      6:30 P.M.
Board of Education Conference Room
Hopkins Building
Enter door # 18


New
 
Click here to access the new  
What is this going to cost me a year?

$5 additional a year on the average assessed home for 3 years will address our needs.

 Click here to read the newsletter.

Click the button below to submit questions you have regarding the referendum.  Your questions will be answered in an upcoming newsletter and on the website.


questions
Below are answers to questions that have been submitted.  
Question Answer
What do you plan to do to keep the general budget costs down to offset the increase in taxes from this referendum?
In order to answer this question, there is a need to understand the different types of funds and tax levies. While the tax rate is presented as a single number, the rate is actually made from two different rates. One is from the general fund which pays for the teachers, supplies, energy, buses, etc. The other is from the debt approved in the past by the voters. It would be this rate that would increase VERY slightly for only a few years. The debt we currently have will begin expiring in the next few years. This will allow the district to avoid increases in taxes while using the bond proceeds to ensure we maintain strong buildings.
Are the MS field repairs being done to support MS sports that are trying to be instated and if so, will any money be used to fund the MS Sport program?
Decisions about the potential for Middle School Sports have not yet been made. There is a committee exploring various options. The fields are used by the Township Recreation Department and our Physical Education classes. Watered fields allow for better conditioning. Better conditioned fields allow for fewer injuries.
Will our school taxes go up because of this?
There is a spreadsheet on our website that demonstrates the current and proposed debt. It may be difficult to believe, but a great deal of thought was put into the timing of this referendum question. For a taxpayer with home assessed at the Burlington Township average of approximately, $228,000, the largest increase in any one year of the ten years proposed for the debt would be $5.00 a year. This is because we planned this referendum at a time when old debt is expiring to reduce the potential tax impact. This estimate is based on 10 year financing at a rate of 3%.
Will any of the money from the sale of the bonds be used to fund middle school sports?
No, the sale of bonds can only be used to refurbish and renovate the buildings and infrastructure. The funds cannot be used to support the operations of the district, including salaries and fees associated with a Middle School sports program. Those discussions would occur during the budget process.
 Please explain how 4.3 million dollars is 50% of the proposed 10.+ million dollars you are asking for.
There is a detailed document on the website showing each building and the amount of the total project cost per building and the amounts of eligible and ineligible costs. Eligibility in this case refers not to whether the projects are accepted but rather to whether the projects are eligible for debt service aid. ALL the projects have been approved by the NJDOE. Of the $10.1M, $8.9M are eligible for debt service aid, all projects are allowable by NJDOE.
Why are you scheduling a referendum vote at a time when there are no other elections going on? It appears that this is a sneak attack to get only supporters to the polls since it will not be on the top of the mind of the other voters.
  
There are only 5 times a year a district may seek approval from the voters. The district had to await approval from the NJDOE and follow a schedule based on submission to the NJDOE of projects, submission to the county elections board.
 Why can't we do some of the repairs? - $10,000,000 is a lot of money and my taxes are close to $10,000 already.
 The district carefully planned the timing of this referendum to have the least impact on our local taxes as possible. We have current debt that will begin to expire which will allow for the $10.1M in projects to be completed without increasing taxes for the debt service. This portion of the local school tax on your tax bill will not increase (please see the tax impact schedule). There is another component of the local school tax on your bill which funds the operations of the district and this is what cannot be increased by more than the 2% cap.
Why are we only hearing about this referendum meeting on the day of the meeting? Never mentioned prior.
 We believe in transparency. This event was advertised through electronic newsletters, the websites, and the electronic board on the corner of Fountain and Jacksonville Rd. The Burlington Foundation advertised this on their website and through their newsletters. Check out the Nov. 1 edition of BTF Connection. Click this link to view all  Foundation Newsletters. The Falcon Flyer also featured this information in the Nov. 4th edition of the NewsFlash.
Will the electricity be upgraded in the Hopkins gym to address the recent outage / overload that caused the power to go out during the Harlem Wizards game? Is that type of issue going to be addressed?
 The electrical infrastructure in the Hopkins building is under review. The district employs two part time licensed electricians who have been reviewing all electrical operations of the district. The repairs needed have already been accomplished. The district continues to work to upgrade to LED lights and better controls for energy efficiency.

Vote by Mail Ballot

A voter may vote by mail by completing the Application for Vote by Mail Ballot  and returning the application to the  County Clerk . To receive your ballot by mail, the application must be received by the County Clerk 7 days prior to the election. A voter may also apply in person to the County Clerk until 3:00 p.m., the day before the election.

If you are unable to make it to the polls on December 8th, you are still able to vote by mail.

Click here to download the Vote by Mail Form.

vote 07
  
What Everyone Wants to Know!!!


What is the potential tax impact?

The District has carefully planned the timing of this referendum and the subsequent selling of bonds in consideration of the retirement of the current debt in order to have minimal impact on taxpayers.  Just as you may do at home, we are planning this as we pay off existing debt.

What is the total bond amount?  $10,114,107 is the total of bonds with 50.4271% being the state aid on the eligible costs of $8,970,036.

What does this mean?
Due to expiring debt, little to no impact may be felt on taxpayers.  In our estimate an average home assessed at $228,866 will experience approximately a $5.00 increase a year in the first three years.  Expiring debt will allow the payments in the future to remain at or below the current amount per household.

What happens if the referendum does not pass?
It is inevitable that this work will have to be completed.  If the referendum fails, we will not get the 50% matching funds from the state and the cost will have to go into the general budget which will compete for educational dollars.  

Tax Impact on Bond Spreadsheet


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