State Sen. Declan O’Scanlon (R-Little Silver) is pushing legislation that would clarify that New Jersey’s School Ethics Act cannot be used to prohibit or limit school board members from speaking about matters of public concern.
S-4091, introduced by O’Scanlon and Sen. Raj Mukherji (D-Jersey City), would amend the School Ethics Act to specify that the law and its Code of Ethics for School Board Members cannot be construed to restrict a board member from speaking, including through social media, about matters of public concern, such as school-related issues.
O’Scanlon highlighted the legislation on Wednesday after a federal judge dismissed an Alloway school board member’s lawsuit alleging state officials had restricted her First Amendment right to free speech.
“School board members are elected to speak with the people they represent, not to sit quietly in the corner and hope nobody asks them a question about what’s happening in their own school district,” O’Scanlon said.
“They should be able to talk openly with parents, taxpayers, and their neighbors about school budgets, policies, and other issues of public concern without wondering whether an honest conversation is going to result in an ethics complaint,” he said.
The School Ethics Act, enacted in 1991, establishes ethical standards for local school board members and school administrators and created the School Ethics Commission to oversee complaints and alleged violations.
The law’s Code of Ethics for School Board Members prohibits personal promises or private actions that could compromise the board. It also requires members to keep confidential matters that could needlessly injure individuals or schools confidential while providing accurate information on other matters.
Under existing law, anyone can file a complaint alleging a violation of the School Ethics Act or the Code of Ethics for School Board Members. The School Ethics Commission can investigate complaints and, when it finds a violation, recommend sanctions including reprimand, censure, suspension, or removal.
S-4091 would not repeal those ethical requirements. Instead, it would add explicit language stating that the act cannot be interpreted to prohibit or limit a board member’s speech on a matter of public concern.
O’Scanlon said the legislation is intended to prevent ethics rules from dissuading board members from communicating with their constituents.
“If we create a system where elected officials are afraid to speak candidly with the people who elected them, we haven’t strengthened ethical government; we’ve made it less transparent, less accountable, and less connected to the communities it is supposed to serve,” he said.
The bill was introduced on May 4 and has been referred to the Senate Education Committee.