Legislative advocacy is a necessary and integral part of PTA’s work. The New Jersey PTA Legislative Program and Priorities are the authority for action by New Jersey PTA on legislation and regulations affecting the health, education, and welfare of all children and youth, based on the authority of the National and New Jersey PTA bylaws. Resolautions along with legislative actions and priorities are indicative of the issues on which PTA targets its efforts and activity. 

2026 -2028 Legislative Program

EDUCATION 

• Provide the most comprehensive and diversified education possible for all children and youth, one that achieves quality and excellence. 

• Secure funding for public education sufficient to provide a thorough and efficient opportunity for all students. 

• Ensure teacher preparation programs and support services are designed to attract qualified candidates, and retain them in the teaching profession. 

• Ensure educational programs that help children and youth to better understand the need to protect and conserve natural resources. 

• Support Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, anAd Mathematics (STEAM) Education. 

• Promote global education, including foreign languages, and multicultural education. 

• Promote quality counseling, guidance, health, and library services at all educational levels. 

• Promote the teaching of how to use AI tools safely, responsibly, and effectively. 

• Promote the study of New Jersey and American history as the basis of good citizenship. 

• Promote affordable, accessible, quality childcare, preschool, and afterschool programs. 

• Support the New Jersey Student Learning Standards. 

• Support the work of State and Federal regulations and legislation on Special Education. 

HEALTH & SAFETY 

• • Provide for current education and prevention programs for children and youth on the subjects of drug and alcohol use, tobacco use, E-Cigarettes and Electronic Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS) (i.e., vaping) related health issues and communicable diseases acquired by sharing inhalant products.

  • Secure adequate treatment and rehabilitation services for children and youth suffering from substance abuse and mental health issues. 

  • Ensure that all children and families have adequate food, shelter, clothing and health care. 

  • Protect and improve the health of all children and youth through the prevention, treatment and control of diseases. 

  • Prevent and control or eliminate hazards to the safety and well-being of all children and youth. 

  • Provide for all children and youth effective education, community services, and facilities directed to family engagement and well-being. 

  • Provide services and facilities for the care and protection of abused dependent, abandoned, runaway and homeless children and youth. 

  • Educate families regarding safe food, water and drugs, as well as cosmetics and other products and medical devices. 

  • Provide education and prevention programs for all families and training for members and non-members on the subject of violent behavior and bullying.

  • Support federal and state legislation that regulates the sale and possession of assault weapons and handguns. 

JUVENILE JUSTICE 

• Encourage collaboration between law enforcement, the judicial system, and child welfare agencies. 

• Encourage the use of Civil Citation as an alternative to youth arrest. 

• Prohibit youth who are charged with a serious crime from being tried in the adult court system unless there has been an opportunity for a judicial hearing and appeal. 

• Prevent the incarceration of youth in adult facilities. 

• Support youth leaving the juvenile justice system with programs that prevent repeat offenses. 

• Promote restorative justice in our schools by addressing victims' needs, holding offenders meaningfully accountable for their actions and engaging the community in the justice process.

2026 - 2027 Legislative Priorities 

• Support legislation and regulations to assure that every student in New Jersey will be able to attend school in a safe, healthy environment. This includes, but is not limited to legislation on school security, lead, distracted driving, all forms of tobacco use, and cyber safety. 

• Support funding and training for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) in all public schools and ensure that parents are aware of the state requirements. 

• Support full funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and all other state and federal laws affecting the education of children and youth receiving special services in New Jersey and continue to encourage local communities to monitor their enforcement. 

• Support initiatives that encourage students’ overall health including social emotional health, healthy sleep habits, physical fitness, healthy eating, and that focus on food insecurities in the home, school, and community. 

• Work with the NJ Department of Education to incorporate standards for healthy sleep habits into the existing health, science and physical education curriculum and school advisory functions to address students' sleep needs and patterns, potential risks of insufficient sleep and sleep related difficulties. Support later school start times for high school students. 

• Support legislation that secures adequate funding for public school education and school infrastructure to provide a comprehensive and diverse education for all students in the classroom and on-line when emergencies dictate.  

• Support legislative initiatives aimed at addressing and diversifying the teacher pipeline to help recruit, prepare and support teacher candidates. 

• Support gun safety legislation to reduce gun violence and deaths by establishing programs to educate students, parents and community members about gun safety and violence prevention in collaboration with other partnering agencies. 

• Support full funding for school libraries and advocate for legislation requiring the teaching of digital literacy to all students at every grade level. 

• Support initiatives proven to close the achievement gap for students with greater needs.

2026 Leadership Convention Resolutions 

The Primary Responsibility of the Resolutions Committee is: 

• To review, report, and edit, if necessary, new resolutions submitted by local units, county and community councils and state chairmen 

• To review and recommend disposition of past resolutions 

• To initiate and prepare new resolutions on subjects requiring PTA action which were not included in resolutions submitted by the aforementioned groups 

• To affirm the resolutions approved by the delegates to the National PTA Convention in June of 2026 

The following resolutions will be presented to the delegates at the 2026 New Jersey Leadership Convention and Annual Meeting: 

2026 Approved National PTA Resolutions 

• All 2026 National PTA Approved Resolutions are available for review at njpta.org

New Jersey PTA 2026 Resolutions: 

• Standards for Family-School Partnerships Program 

• Festival Seating 

• Parental Engagement in School Funding Decisions 

Resolution #1- Standards for Family-School Partnerships Program 

WHEREAS, NPTA and NJPTA recognize that schools with well-structured family involvement programs experience greater benefits for students, families, and educators; and 

WHEREAS, Research shows that when families are involved, students will have higher grades and graduation rates, better attendance, lower rates of suspension, less violent behavior and better self-esteem; and 

WHEREAS, The NPTA and NJPTA successfully advocated for measures that strengthened the family-school partnership of ESSA formerly (No Child Left Behind);

and 

WHEREAS, NPTA Standards for Family-School Partnership Program lists 6 standards for involvement including 

Standard 1: Welcome all Families into School Community 

Standard 2: Communicating Effectively 

Standard 3: Support Student Success 

Standard 4: Standing Up for Every Child 

Standard 5: Sharing Power 

Standard 6: Collaborating with Community 

WHEREAS, The purpose of these standards is to promote meaningful parent and family participation; therefore, be it 

RESOLVED, That the NJPTA will encourage local PTA’s and county councils to provide programs such as Family Reading 

Experience for parents, caregivers, faculty, and community; be it further 

RESOLVED, That NJPTA gather information on programs for parent/family involvement such as NJPTA's STEM & Family and College and Career Readiness; and be it further 

RESOLVED, That local PTA’s include family involvement programs, such as education about New Jersey Learning Standards. 

RATIONALE: This resolution, while broad, is still applicable today. Studies have found that children do better in school when a knowledgeable parent is involved in their education. To secure a productive future for our children and this country, families must be given an opportunity to fully participate in education. Programs provided by the PTA can meet this challenge. 

Approved: 2005 - Revised: 2012 - Reaffirmed: 2019 - Proposed to be Reaffirmed 

Resolution #2- Festival Seating 

WHEREAS, The objects of the New Jersey PTA address the need to secure adequate laws for the care and protection of children and youth; and 

WHEREAS, The practice of selling admission tickets to concerts, shows, and performances that allow the ticket holders the privilege to stand in a space, called festival seating, is known to create an unsafe environment for ticket holders who are primarily children and youth; and 

WHEREAS, Festival seating forces concert ticket holders to compete for limited, popular viewing locations in front of a concert stage, seriously jeopardizing crowd safety; and 

WHEREAS, Festival Seating raises a concern for open grassy areas of seating which have no assigned seats; and therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the New Jersey PTA seek legislative action that will prohibit festival seating at concerts for ticket holders, and be it further 

RESOLVED, That New Jersey PTA prepares information on this subject for presentation to members of the State Legislature for the writing of legislation that addresses this concern. 

RATIONALE: “Festival Seating” has proven difficult to prohibit, and in many areas, municipalities have stepped in to address concerns when raised by communities. Further advocacy would require additional research and a reconsideration of concerns to achieve a more effective approach. 

Approved: 1991 - Reaffirmed: 1998; 2005; 2012; 2019 - Proposed to be Retired 

Resolution #3- Parental Engagement in School Funding Decisions 

WHEREAS, All public schools in New Jersey are funded by a combination of state funding and property taxes; and 

WHEREAS, Many school districts in New Jersey have been underfunded by the state for decades; and 

WHEREAS, Many of these schools have had to cut staff and delay badly needed infrastructure improvements multiple times in the past few decades; and 

WHEREAS, All decisions concerning school funding are made by school board members and the state government; and 

WHEREAS, Parents are among the most important stakeholders in schools, yet have had little or no input into school funding decisions; therefore, be it 

RESOLVED, That NJPTA and its constituent members should advocate for parents to be informed and engaged on an ongoing basis in all school funding decisions, and be it further 

RESOLVED, That NJPTA should advocate for all school boards to adopt policies requiring the direct involvement of local PTAs during the budget process to ensure sufficient transparency and to enable parents to be informed advocates in their district and in Trenton, and be it further 

RESOLVED, That NJPTA will develop and implement school funding and school governance training opportunities for parents to effectively advocate for their students' needs, and will make every effort to keep parents informed about any significant changes in school funding law.

RATIONALE: Because of the current fiscal situation and the rapid changes in school funding both from the state and local school boards, it is essential for parents to stay informed and engaged about school funding. 

Proposed to be adopted 2026