Local officials are facing off in Plainfield after the city’s board of education proposed raising local school property taxes by 36% — the district’s first tax increase in six years — to help close a budget gap.
Plainfield Mayor Adrian Mapp publicly criticized the move, saying it would further burden residents who are already facing financial struggles in the Union County city.
“This decision, which will place an even greater financial strain on homeowners, is a shocking abdication of the BOE’s duty to be responsible stewards of public funds,” the mayor said in a statement.
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Plainfield’s median household income was $70,712 in 2022, according to Census figures. That is among the lowest in the county.
During the city’s March 18 board of education meeting, officials said the school tax increase was necessary to offset the dwindling state aid the district has relied on in recent years.
In a 7-1 vote, the Plainfield Board of Education approved a preliminary $338 million school district budget and introduced a measure to raise the local tax levy from 2.14% to 2.92% for the next school year.
The increased tax levy would mean school taxes would increase by about 36% — amounting to an $853 annual increase in taxes for the average homeowner, according to the board.
“I know that is not an easy pill to swallow, nor is it easy as a taxpayer here in the city of Plainfield, as a homeowner, to deliver,” Cameron Cox, Plainfield Board of Education business administrator, said while presenting the budget.
“But it is my job to give you where we stand and what steps we have the option to take — and we should take — in order to be able to deliver all the services that we need," Cox added.
Though nearly 75% of Plainfield’s budget comes from state aid, the district plans to rely more on taxes to support its schools in order to “prepare for the future” and avoid depleting its emergency reserve accounts, Plainfield Superintendent Rashon K. Hasan added.
“We cannot put ourselves in a position where we’re constantly making withdrawals from our savings account to balance our checking account,” Hasan said at the meeting.
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Last month, after Gov. Phil Murphy unveiled his $12.1 billion school funding plan for fiscal year 2026, the New Jersey Department of Education released preliminary state aid figures for the state’s nearly 600 districts.
Plainfield is slated to receive about $288 million in state aid under Murphy’s proposal. That is a nearly $11.9 million increase, or 4.3% more than the previous year.
However, it is not as big of an increase as Plainfield has received in previous years. In 2024, Plainfield saw one of the largest state aid increases in New Jersey, totaling $30 million.
New Jersey’s school funding law, which was fully implemented for the first time last year, is designed to shift aid away from overfunded schools to support underfunded ones. But some districts say the formula is unfair.
As the state implements the formula, lower-income districts like Plainfield are less likely to see the substantial aid increases they once did, school board officials said.
According to Cox, the state has advised low-income districts —formerly known as “Abbott districts” — to begin increasing their local tax levies in preparation for reduced state funding.
A public hearing on Plainfield’s school budget, including the proposed tax increase, is scheduled for April 29.
The proposed tax increase also became a political flashpoint after the mayor publicly criticized Councilman Richard Wyatt —who plans to run for Plainfield mayor in June — for celebrating the school budget proposal.
“A 36% tax hike is not a cause for celebration. It is a devastating blow to Plainfield homeowners, many of whom are already struggling with rising costs and economic uncertainty,” Mapp said.
In response, Wyatt defended his stance in a Facebook post, saying raising taxes should be a last resort and Plainfield schools are struggling under an unfair system that prioritizes local tax incentives for developers and charter schools.
“I understand the financial pressures families are under,” Wyatt said. “In these uncertain times, I do not and would not support a tax increase.”