New Jersey § 18a:7-8

§ 18a:7-8.

Each executive county superintendent shall: a. Visit and examine from time to time all of the schools under his general supervision

and exercise general supervision over them in accordance with the rules prescribed

from time to time by the State board; b. Keep himself informed as to the management, methods of instruction and discipline

and the courses of study and textbooks in use, the condition of the school libraries,

and the condition of the real and personal property, particularly in respect to the

construction, heating, ventilation and lighting of school buildings, in the local

districts under his general supervision, and make recommendations in connection therewith; c. Advise with and counsel the boards of education of the local districts under his

general supervision and of any other district of the county when so requested, in

relation to the performance of their duties; d. Promote administrative and operational efficiencies and cost savings within the

school districts in the county while ensuring that the districts provide a thorough

and efficient system of education; e. Based on standards adopted by the commissioner, recommend to the commissioner,

who is hereby granted the authority to effectuate those recommendations, that certain

school districts be required to enter arrangements with one or more other school districts

or educational services commissions for the consolidation of the district's administrative

services; f. Recommend to the commissioner the elimination of laws the executive county superintendent

determines to be unnecessary State education mandates, other than the categories of

laws set forth in section 3 of P.L.1996, c. 24 ( C.52:13H-3 ); g. Eliminate districts located in the county that are not operating schools on the

effective date of P.L.2009, c. 78 ( C.18A:8-43 et al.), in accordance with a plan and schedule included in the plan submitted to

and approved by the commissioner; h. No later than three years following the effective date of sections 42 to 58 of P.L.2007, c. 63 ( C.18A:7-11 et al.), recommend to the commissioner a school district consolidation plan to eliminate

all districts, other than county-based districts and other than preschool or kindergarten

through grade 12 districts in the county, through the establishment or enlargement

of regional school districts. After the approval of the plan by the commissioner, the executive county superintendent

shall require each board of education covered by a proposal in the plan to conduct

a special school election, at a time to be determined by the executive county superintendent,

and submit thereat the question whether or not the executive county superintendent's

proposal for the regionalization of the school district shall be adopted. The question shall be deemed adopted if it receives a vote in accordance with the

provisions of N.J.S.18A:13-5 . If the question is adopted by the voters, then the regional district shall be established

or enlarged in accordance with chapter 13 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes; i. Promote coordination and regionalization of pupil transportation services through

means such as reviewing bus routes and schedules of school districts and nonpublic

schools within the county; j. Review and approve all employment contracts for superintendents of schools, assistant superintendents

of schools, and school business administrators in school districts within the county,

prior to the execution of those contracts . The review and approval of the employment contracts shall be according to standards

adopted by the commissioner, provided that the standards shall not include maximum

salary amounts for superintendents of schools ; k. Request the commissioner to order a forensic audit and to select an auditor for

any school district in the county upon the determination by the executive county superintendent,

according to standards adopted by the commissioner, that the accounting practices

in the district necessitate such an audit; l . Review all school budgets of the school districts within the county, and may, pursuant

to section 5 of P.L.1996, c. 138 ( C.18A:7F-5 ), disapprove a portion of a school district's proposed budget if he determines that

the district has not implemented all potential efficiencies in the administrative

operations of the district or if he determines that the budget includes excessive

non-instructional expenses. If the executive county superintendent disapproves a portion of the school district's

budget pursuant to this paragraph, the school district shall deduct the disapproved

amounts from the budget prior to publication of the budget, and during the budget

year the school district shall not transfer funds back into those accounts; m. Permit a district to submit to the voters a separate proposal or proposals for

additional funds pursuant to paragraph (9) of subsection d. of section 5 of P.L.1996, c. 138 ( C.18A:7F-5 ), only if: (1) the district provides the executive county superintendent with written

documentation that the district has made efforts to enter into shared arrangements

with other districts, municipalities, counties, and other units of local government

for the provision of administrative, business, purchasing, public and nonpublic transportation,

and other required school district services; (2) the district certifies and provides

written documentation that the district participates in on-going shared arrangements;

or (3) the district certifies and provides written documentation that entering such

shared arrangements would not result in cost savings or would result in additional

expenses for the district; n. Promote cooperative purchasing within the county of textbooks and other instructional

materials; o . Coordinate with the Department of Education to maintain a real time Statewide and

district-wide database that tracks the types and capacity of special education programs

being implemented by each district and the number of students enrolled in each program

to identify program availability and needs; p. Coordinate with the Department of Education to maintain a Statewide and district-wide

list of all special education students served in out-of-district programs and a list

of all public and private entities approved to receive special education students

that includes pertinent information such as audit results and tuition charges; q. Serve as a referral source for districts that do not have appropriate in-district

programs for special education students and provide those districts with information

on placement options in other school districts; r. Conduct regional planning and identification of program needs for the development

of in-district special education programs; s. Serve as a liaison to facilitate shared special education services within the county

including, but not limited to direct services, personnel development, and technical

assistance; t. Work with districts to develop in-district special education programs and services

including providing training in inclusive education, positive behavior supports, transition

to adult life, and parent-professional collaboration; u. Provide assistance to districts in budgetary planning for resource realignment

and reallocation to direct special education resources into the classroom; v. Report on a regular basis to the commissioner on progress in achieving the goal

of increasing the number of special education students educated in appropriate programs

with non-disabled students; w. Render a report to the commissioner annually on or before September 1, in the manner

and form prescribed by him, of such matters relating to the schools under his jurisdiction

as the commissioner shall require; and x. Perform such other duties as shall be prescribed by law. Any budgetary action of the executive county superintendent under this section may

be appealed directly to the commissioner, who shall render a decision within 15 days

of the receipt of the appeal. If the commissioner fails to issue a decision within 15 days of the filing of an

appeal, the budgetary action of the executive county superintendent shall be deemed

approved. The commissioner shall by regulation establish a procedure for such appeals. Nothing in this section shall be construed or interpreted to contravene or modify

the provisions of the “New Jersey Employer-Employee Relations Act,” P.L.1941, c. 100

( C.34:13A-1 et seq. ), or to limit or restrict the scope of negotiations as provided pursuant to law,

or to require an employer to enter into a subcontracting agreement which affects the

employment of any employee in a collective bargaining unit represented by a majority

representative during the time that an existing collective bargaining agreement with

the majority representative is in effect. Nothing in this section is intended to interfere with a school district's ability

to provide a thorough and efficient education.