Our schools should be fully funded.
West Orange schools continue to endure multi-million dollar budget cuts, and without state action, every year threatens even deeper reductions. Class sizes are growing, staffing is shrinking, and educational quality is beginning to suffer. West Orange parents are fighting for a better way forward.
What's at Stake
A Growing Structural Deficit — Caused by the State, Not the District
Last year's budget already meant painful cuts. This year is projected to be worse: a $14–15M structural deficit because the state's funding formula keeps sending less money to districts like ours.
The Formula Says We Should Pay More… But We Can't
The state says West Orange should raise 36% more in local taxes than three years ago. But state law only allows a 2% tax increase each year. The math doesn't work.
Staff Already Cut
57 staff positions were lost last year. Without changes at the state level, more cuts are coming.
Every Student Is Affected
Over 7,000 students across all 13 schools face bigger class sizes, fewer programs, and less support — and it will keep getting worse unless the formula changes.
How We Got Here
A Formula That Doesn't Add Up
The state uses a formula to decide how much each town should pay for its own schools. For West Orange, that number keeps going up — 5–15% every year. But there's a state law that says we can only raise taxes by 2% a year. So the state expects us to pay more, but won't let us raise the money. Every year, the gap gets bigger.
State Aid Is Unpredictable
The formula can swing our equalization aid by millions from year to year. In FY26, we lost $7.1M in a single year. In FY27, we recovered $3.0M — but we're still $4.8M below where we were two years ago. One good year doesn't make up for a broken formula, and the district can't plan around funding that changes this dramatically with almost no warning.
Costs Keep Rising
Health insurance, special education, and transportation costs go up every year — 8–18% or more the last few years. The district can't control most of these costs, and the state isn't covering the difference.
Few Options Left
The district used up its savings and its extra taxing room from prior years. In the near-term, there are almost no tools left to close the budget gap without cutting more staff and programs.
Our Goals
Update the State Formula
The state funding formula is the root cause of our budget problems. We're pushing state legislators and the Governor to update it so towns like West Orange aren't punished for looking "wealthy" on paper when most families are middle-class.
Do What We Can Locally
While we fight for state-level change, we're working with the Board of Education to use every tool available locally — smarter budgeting, cost comparisons with similar districts, and full transparency about how decisions are made.
Build a Community Fund
We're planning a nonprofit so our community can raise money to directly support our schools — to try to offset some resources that budget cuts are threatening to take away.
Join Us
Stay informed and help protect our schools.
Take Action
Contact your elected officials and tell them to change the formula.