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Gov. Chris Christie (left) has requested a briefing from N.J. Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf on how the state's about 180 private schools for disabled students are spending taxpayer money.

(Tony Kurdzuk/The Star-Ledger)

TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie has asked Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf to look into how taxpayer dollars are spent at New Jersey's private schools for disabled students, responding to a recent Star-Ledger investigation.

The newspaper’s review showed the schools — together a more than $600 million industry — are paid for by the public but can spend in ways public schools cannot, sometimes fueling nepotism, high salaries, fancy cars, generous pensions and questionable business deals.

"It was all news to me when I read it so I called over to Chris Cerf and said to him, ‘Put together a briefing for me and tell me what you think is going on,’ and he said he would," Christie told The Star-Ledger in an interview last week.

The governor said he expected the briefing after Tuesday’s election and wanted to wait before saying if he thought reforms were necessary.

"With all due respect to any story, I want to hear it from my administration, what they think," Christie said, "and if we have to do stuff, we’ll do it, but he’s gotta prepare that for me and come see me and talk about it."

Christie’s reaction came as a growing number of Democratic state lawmakers pledged to change the rules and laws governing the approximately 180 schools.

Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver (D-Essex) said "this issue is a deep concern" and called it "outrageous" for the Christie administration to cap public school superintendent salaries "while doing nothing apparently to combat this wasteful spending of taxpayer money at private schools."

Under the public school salary cap, which took effect in 2011, a superintendent overseeing 6,501 to 9,999 students can earn a maximum of $175,000. Records for fiscal year 2012 showed 52 employees at the private schools, some with average daily enrollments as low as 27, earned more.

Of those, 19 directors made the maximum allowed salary of $225,734 — which is set by the state and was recently increased to $233,556 — and another three made $34 less than that.

The Education Department has said capping superintendent salaries resulted in the greatest immediate savings.

Oliver also seized on the investigation’s findings that 22 cars — including two BMWs, a Land Rover, three Lexus and two Mercedes — were charged in part to taxpayers even though many were kept at officials’ homes and used for their personal transportation.

"The fact that some of our poorest schools cannot afford to buy books under this governor but private school officials get to drive around in fancy cars is appalling — and hypocritical on the part of this administration," Oliver said.

A day after the investigation Assembly Education Committee Chairman Patrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex) and state Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Mercer), the vice chairwoman of the upper house’s panel, said more oversight and accountability should be a top priority.

Oliver said she expected hearings by Diegnan’s panel this fall.

Through a spokesman, Cerf declined to comment on the newspaper’s findings, citing the need for objectivity during his review.

"The Department of Education intends to take a close look at the issue," the spokesman, Michael Yaple, said. "However, it would be premature to speculate beyond that until the review is complete."

During the newspaper’s investigation, the department confirmed it was considering a proposal largely put forward by the schools that would eliminate many existing spending rules but also would cap tuition. The department said it believed the change would save taxpayers money.

The proposal was endorsed by Christie’s Education Transformation Task Force and would require the approval of the state Board of Education.

Yaple has previously said that because the schools are private entities, current law and various court decisions limit the state’s oversight authority and "unfortunately, those are impediments that have extended different treatment to these schools." He said addressing many of the issues would require action by the state Legislature.

Star-Ledger staff writer MaryAnn Spoto contributed to this report.



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