NJED Report Op-ed from BHCW Contributor Uncovers a Potentially Significant Problem on Medical Benefits in the BHPSNJ Budget

NJ Education Report published an Op-Ed from Sai Akiri alleging significant distortions in how the Budget is being presented to the Public. The article states the District is inflating the cost of Medical Benefits and that dollars budgeted for Medical Benefits are later pulled away to fund other items not related to medical benefits.

The letter written to the county (included in the article along with supporting documentation) states that:

“For the period January 2022 to June 2022, there were a total of $636,709.19 in transfers to other accounts. None of this money appears to be related to Medical Benefits. For the current budget year, the transfers from the Medical Benefit account total $606,148.42 through February 2023 and none of them has anything to do with Medical Benefits. “

The evidence appears legitimate and, if valid, leads to some critical questions.

My questions would center on legal costs.

Assuming the allegations are correct: Is this “feeder” account a way to distort the proportion of legal fees to the total Budget to avoid the threshold of legally required oversight using staff benefits as a shield?

This is a fair question, as the Administration and BOE have refused to answer questions on the costs of legal fees connected to the Superintendents Nepotism Defense and legal bills that remain heavily redacted are the subject of scrutiny from parties within and outside the District.

Why hasn’t the District discussed it with the Public if there is a legitimate reason for this practice?

Why this practice exists should be a straightforward question for District Administration to answer, and it should make sense – it should also be answered thoroughly before another step is taken toward approving this Budget.

Full Article

Related Content:

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE BERKELEY HEIGHTS 2023 SCHOOL BUDGET REMAIN

FORMER BOE PRESIDENT JOHN SINCAGLIA COMMENTS ON THE BERKELEY HEIGHTS PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT BUDGET

NJ EDUCATION REPORT ON BERKELEY HEIGHTS PUBLIC SCHOOL BUDGET CONCERNS

COPY OF BERKELEY HEIGHTS PUBLIC SCHOOL BUDGET

STOP THE INSANITY!

John Migueis