Gov. Phil Murphy on Feb. 25 delivered his fiscal year 2026 budget address, and the funding in his proposal earmarked for public schools and pensions elicited applause from those in attendance inside the State House’s Assembly Chamber in Trenton.
“With every budget we have introduced, we have provided record-high funding for our K-12 schools. And with our final budget, we will once again fully fund New Jersey’s public education system,” Murphy said. “And we’re also going to reduce volatility in the school funding process by ensuring that no school district sees a steep reduction in state aid from one year to the next. Altogether, our budget will provide the single-largest investment into New Jersey’s public schools in history.”
In other education-related matters, Murphy noted that “working with districts across New Jersey to ban cellphones from our K-12 schools” is a priority. To support that effort, his FY26 budget will provide several million dollars “to a group of school districts that are interested in making the switch to phone-free schools, so our students can remain focused on their studies, and our educators don’t have to compete with TikTok for their attention.”
Later in his address, Murphy said, “Our budget will make the full payment into New Jersey’s pension system for the fifth year in a row. By doing so, every worker who has served our state can enjoy the dignified retirement they have richly earned.”
