Senator Shirley K. Turner (D-Mercer/Hunterdon) issued the following statement today in response to the report of significant decreases in spending for school board/budget elections. According to a Star-Ledger article, spending on school board races fell by about two-thirds to $597,000. Since January 2000, Turner sponsored legislation and fought to move school elections to November. Her bill, S3148, giving voters, municipalities, and school districts the ability to move local school elections from April to November was signed into law in January 2012, allowing the changes to be put into place for this year’s elections. Eighty-six percent of school districts opted to make the change to move school elections to November.

“This is a victory for taxpayers. The significant decrease in spending for school board and budget elections shows that school district spending was within cap; therefore, eliminating the necessity for voters to pass a budget. Moreover, the consolidation of elections saved taxpayers the cost of paying for an extra election in April. This money can be better spent in the classroom for educating our children. More voters participated in the election of school board members this year, than in past years, and increasing voter participation makes for good and responsive government.”