A majority of board members voiced their support for the proposed county budget during the Gloucester County Board of Supervisors’ April 7 meeting. Last Wednesday’s meeting was held in the Gloucester High School auditorium.

County Administrator Brent Fedors’s proposed budget would provide 5 percent raises to school and county employees, and fund five years of CIP projects for the schools, while keeping the real estate tax rate unchanged.

One of the biggest changes in the budget for fiscal year 2022 is using the new 1 percent sales tax to fund eligible new construction and major renovations to the schools. Fedors proposed that a majority of the funds brought in by the sales tax be used to pay school-related debt for current and past projects.

By using the sales tax to pay for school-related debt, the general fund would be alleviated and would allow the county to fund other expenses. Some of the debt proposed to be paid by the sales tax goes back to 2003. This use of the sales ...