This letter from South Orange Maplewood School District Superintendent Brian Osborne  just arrived via the Seth Boyden PTA:

Dear South Orange-Maplewood school community, 

Governor Christie's Executive Order 14 cut state aid for the current school year and requires school districts to use surplus and reserve funds to supplant state aid reductions. 

This action has a significant impact on school districts across the state and decreases South Orange-Maplewood's 2009-2010 school budget by $2.2 million. More significantly, because districts allocate fund balances each year to the next fiscal year, the $2.2 million reduction directly impacts the district's 2010-2011 budget. 

Further, the Governor recently stated that districts should expect a 15% cut to state aid for next year.  For our district this amounts to over $1 million in additional cuts. This budget season is a most challenging one, given Executive Order 14, reductions in 2010-2011 state aid, a spike in health insurance costs, and the effects of the troubled economy on local taxpayers.

Effective immediately, I am suspending all personnel hires, supply purchases, travel expenditures, and conference attendance not deemed to be of an emergency nature for the 2009-2010 school year. We will continue to keep you apprised of the District's budget developments in the coming weeks. 

Thank you for all that you do every day to prepare every one of our 6,400 great kids for higher learning and success in the 21st century. 

Sincerely,

Brian Osborne