For most of NJ, voters will be going to the polls tomorrow to approve or reject school budgets. Many schools are proposing large increases in their tax levy. Most towns are at or slightly below the state mandated tax levy cap of 4%. Some towns however have received approval from their county superintendent to exceed this cap. For example my town, Upper Freehold, has received approval to seek a 9.88% tax increase. Six towns have an additional ballot question to raise additional funds for special projects.
Before you go to vote you need to ask yourself two questions:
- Are you personally willing to pay more for the education of your town's children who go to public schools?
- Are you willing to initiate force against your neighbors to have them pay more whether or not they can afford it?
If you can't answer yes to both questions then you must vote no. If your answer to question 1 is yes, but you don't desire to initiate force against your neighbor you could always make a voluntary donation to your school.
One way to do that would be to set up a non-profit education foundation, such as they have in many towns in NJ. Such a foundation, by raising money on a voluntary basis, can supplement programs that might otherwise be reduced or eliminated because of lack of funding. As a society we should always favor voluntary interactions over force.