These fees are included in every referendum application and are not unique to Lacey Township. They may be listed differently, depending on the nature of the project. These fees include Department of Education/DCA review fees, civil agency review fees and municipal review fees. For paving projects, they can also include Soil Conservation District review fees, and the possibility of applications for additional state and local permits. 

The soft costs, otherwise known as Other Allowable Costs, are required by the NJ Department of Education to be factored into every referendum to cover both expected and unexpected costs. The standard amount is typically 25-30% of the total building construction costs. This is no different for Lacey Township, which uses a 25% soft cost estimate. The soft costs for Lacey Township include permit, legal and professional fees, testing fees (as needed), printing and reproduction costs, plus a construction contingency for potential increases in market pricing. Government fees are included under this category. 

Regardless of the amount of the soft costs, school districts cannot spend more on the projects than voters authorize and can’t use the funds for projects that were not in the proposal. If referendum project costs are lower than estimates, the unused funds will be used to pay down the bond.

If voters approve the referendum, the Board is only allowed to spend money on the projects outlined in each question, within the dollar amount listed on the ballot.  

The conservative cost estimates include contingencies, which take into account a realistic level of possible market changes in materials/labor costs, escalation over the construction period and unforeseen conditions. If actual costs exceed what voters approved, plans will have to be adjusted to fit the budget.  

As a public school district, Lacey Township School District must use a competitive bidding process that ensures taxpayers get the lowest contracted price for the work. The district’s architects will only prepare final design and bid specifications for the projects if voters approve the referendum.

The Department of Education program that provides debt service aid has been around since 2000. This program has been the state’s primary mechanism to support school funding for facilities improvements, while districts preserve the annual budget for daily operations directly related to education. Districts across the state have seized this opportunity for funding (here is some data to show how many). 

This funding comes from a different source, and is calculated with a different formula, than the S2 funding for annual budgets that the district has lost over the past seven years. 

Another assurance to the taxpayers is the district’s Final Eligible Cost (FEC) letters that affirm the amount of debt service aid toward the projects. As part of the referendum process, the district submitted project applications for the proposed work. These applications were reviewed and approved, with the promise that, if voters approve, the state will pay the specified amount to the district annually to offset the taxpayers’ share of the investment. Lacey Township Schools have been receiving annual debt service aid for years toward projects from a previously approved referendum.

If voters reject all three ballot questions, school debt taxes for the owner of a home assessed at the Lacey Township average of $287,011 would decrease by $110 on the annual tax bill, which equals about $9 per month. However, if repairs that were not addressed through the bond proposal are instead funded through the annual budget*, taxpayers would absorb the full cost of the improvements without the state aid contribution that comes with an approved referendum.  

*The district’s annual budget currently gets 82% of its funding from tax dollars. 

The owner of Lacey Township’s average assessed home pays $7,273 in taxes, which is less than the Ocean County average of $7,593. Property taxes include county, school and municipal taxes. Lacey Township is ranked 13th out of 33 Ocean County municipalities in average taxes paid. (Source) 

Although Lacey’s tax rate is on the higher side, that doesn’t necessarily translate to higher tax bills. Regardless of tax rate, different factors like assessments and total tax base impact the actual amount of taxes paid. FOR EXAMPLE, Mantoloking residents have the lowest tax rate in the county but have the highest tax bills. (Source)