CAPE MAY — Two local school districts are likely to see a significant increase in state funding for the 2026-27 school year.
During Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget address March 10, she revealed her mission for a more affordable and accountable New Jersey.
“This is an affordability budget, rooted in lowering costs for hardworking families and making state government more accountable to the people we serve,” Sherrill said.
The budget calls for Cape May City schools to receive a 22 percent increase in state aid compared to the previous year, totaling $261,850. For Lower Cape May Regional, state aid would increase by $339,846, a 7.68 percent increase.
The budget must be passed by the New Jersey Legislature and signed into law by June 30.
Zach Palombo, superintendent of Cape May City and West Cape May elementary schools, said the increase in state aid is great, but the state funding does not reflect that schools lost about $55,000 in Title I funds, which are federal grants used to supplement schools with high percentages of children from low-income families.
“That’s discouraging because we do have a significantly high population of free/reduced lunch students,” he said. “You do have students that are below the poverty line and also residents on the base who are at that number to qualify for reduced lunch.”
Palombo added that they would also receive $1,013,268 in Military Impact Aid, another source of federal funding that assists districts educating children who live on base or with parents in the military. In this case, many students come from the United States Coast Guard base.
“I’m glad we got as much money as we did, because it will definitely be a good resource for our at-risk students,” Palombo said. “It ebbs and flows and honestly, that impact aid isn’t guaranteed based on percentages.”
The $60.7 billion budget includes a record-breaking $12.4 billion for K-12 schools in FY 2027, which is the largest amount in state history. It is a $370 million increase year to year.
According to the New Jersey Department of Education, for Cape May County, FY 2026 K-12 aid was $42,565,980, and FY 2027 is projected at $43,778,953, an increase of $1,212,973 (2.85 percent).
New Jersey public schools are funded through a combination of property taxes, state aid and federal funds.
By RACHEL SHUBIN/Special to the Star and Wave
