Metuchen schools to host consolidation seminar School officials critical of actual cost savings BY JAY BODAS Staff Writer By today's end, lawmakers at the state level are expected to release recommendations on instituting fundamental property tax reform for New Jersey residents that could cut property taxes by an average of 20 percent. However, Metuchen school district leaders are worried that the consolidation of school districts will be part of the proposals to come out of Trenton. As a result, school district leaders have planned an educational seminar on the issue to be held on Dec. 6 at 8 p.m. at Moss School for interested members of the public, said Board of Education (BOE) President Ron Grayzel. The evening's speakers would also present alternative suggestions for property tax reform, Grayzel said. State Sen. Barbara Buono and Assemblymen Peter Barnes Jr. and Patrick J. Diegnan are expected to attend. Grayzel said that he has not seen "one shred of evidence" to conclude that school district consolidation would save taxpayers any money. "Since the summer, I have attended many of these presentations, and I don't think you get the complete story out," Grazyel said. "I think the presentations that are done by the Legislature are biased. My problem is that if you want to save money - and save money in a way that saves the quality of education - then it is worth it, but there is no evidence that you would save a dime. "For example, you would have a county-wide system where the politicians hire the bureaucrats," Grayzel said. "Can you imagine what will go on with the textbooks? All of a sudden, you will see school textbook publishers going to political fundraisers." Janine Martin, Metuchen Parent-Teacher Council president, said that school district consolidation would also result in higher average salaries for teachers in the affected school districts. "The district with higher salaries, that contract would have to apply to all the teachers," Martin said. "In the long run, it wouldn't save districts that much, and at the same time, we would be losing the autonomy we currently have." "The example I use is if you merge Metuchen with Edison, the next day the salaries of Metuchen teachers would be a million-and-a-half dollars more expensive," Grayzel said. He added that school district consolidation, by its very nature, would also result in the lost of autonomy for the Metuchen school district. "It would be a complete assault on local rule," he said. "Who says that big megadistricts controlled by county-wide bureaucracies are good things? I have talked to people in Maryland who have it and they hate it. In fact, Devra Golbe on our BOE did an analysis that shows that the most efficient districts are medium-sized ones, like ours." Assemblyman Peter Barnes said that he was "opposed" to the formal "merging of the school districts, themselves." "The people should have a say in how their local school boards and districts are constructed," he said. However, Barnes said that it was "premature" to say that there would not be savings from consolidation of some services. "Some staff, such as music teachers or psychologists, can be consolidated regionally," Barnes said. "Someone would save money for not having to pay for each individual school psychologist or study team. You will have to wait until you see the contents of the bill that comes out of the committees, and then you can agree or disagree." The soon-to-be released recommendations for property tax reform are the product of hearings held on the issue by four special committees established by the Legislature in July. When asked to project the timeline for future progress on the issue, Barnes said that he thought the recommendations could come up for a formal vote in the Legislature by early December. "We will be having a voting session on Dec. 9, and so it is logical to assume the bills on this issue could be ready by then," he said. "Between now and then, the people can come down and testify for or against it, and tweak it or not. This is going to be momentous ... you will have to wait and see which way this is going to move."