Opinion ID: 2294246
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 29

Heading: Geographic Cost Adjustment

Text: Once the base funding for a district is determined, it is modified by applying the Geographic Cost Adjustment (GCA). D-1 ¶ 38. The GCA is an adjustment that reflects county differences in the cost of providing educational services that are outside the control of the district. N.J.S.A. 18A:7F-45. The GCA is applied to the Adequacy Budget to account for differences in wage markets throughout the State by county. D-12 at 31; see also Attwood, 5 T 58:20-24; see also Pittman, 8 T 27:24-28:20. The GCA method used by the DOE was based on a nationally recognized method known as the Taylor Fowler index. Ibid. Rather than use the regional groupings developed in the national Taylor Fowler study, the DOE essentially divided the State by counties. Pittman, 8 T 32:12-19. Pittman testified the State altered the index because the original Taylor Fowler method was not as careful a measure and new census data was available for the State's use in creating the GCA. Pittman, 8 T 33:8-19. In sum, the Adequacy Budget is determined by adding the base cost, at-risk cost, LEP cost, and LEP/at-risk combination cost, and special education adequacy budget costs, and then multiplying the sum by the GCA. N.J.S.A. 18A:7F-51; see also D-83 AB 439. The same is illustrated as follows. Adequacy Budget = (Base Cost + At-Risk Cost + LEP Cost + Comb. Cost + Special Ed under Adeq + Speech) × GCA = ($250,074,966 + $98,302,339 + $0 + $16,807,855 + $26,280,050 + $505,238) × .9987 = $391,460,887 [24]