Bayonne Assemblyman Nick Chiaravalloti (D-31) says he’s “extremely disappointed” that Gov. Phil Murphy (D) “blindsided” him by vetoing a bill that would have delayed New Jersey
Quality Single Accountability Continuum (NJQSAC) testing in certain districts.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“I am extremely disappointed that Governor Murphy decided to absolute veto A-4006, a
bi-partisan bill that passed the legislature with no opposition. At no time during the legislative process did the administration provide comment regarding the bill,” Chiaravalloti said in a statement this afternoon.
“The bill simply delayed reporting requirements of school districts for NJQSAC for this
academic year. Our schools are dealing with multiple issues related to Covid-19 and their only focus must be on providing an education for their students, safely, in the new environment we find ourselves in due to the pandemic.”
The bill, which was also sponsored by Assembly members Ralph Caputo (D-28), Pedro Mejia (D-32), Nellie Pou (D-35), and Shirley Turner (D-15), cleared the Assembly Education Committee back in June and ultimately passed the full assembly and senate.
Specifically, the legislation asked to postpone NJQSAC reviews scheduled for the 2019-2020 school year that were not completed because of COVID-19 school closures, or those scheduled for 2020-2021.
Instead, those reviews would have been rescheduled for the 2021-2022 scholastic year.
Chiaravalloti continued that the veto “came without negotiation or warning” and said being “blindsided” in such a fashion is “unacceptable.”
Due to the complex and time consuming nature of the reviews, Murphy said in his veto statement that it made little sense to do two reviews in a three-year time frame.
“Requiring certain districts to undergo two reviews in three years is redundant and unnecessary, particularly at a time when districts are focusing resources on COVID-19 response measures,” the governor wrote.
