"Fairness for School Districts in Development Restricted Areas Act"; provides additional State school aid to certain school districts located in municipalities that are part of Highlands or Pinelands preservation areas.

This bill, titled the "Fairness for School Districts in Development Restricted Areas Act," provides additional state funding to specific school districts located in municipalities within New Jersey's Highlands or Pinelands preservation areas. To qualify, a school district must have a resident enrollment of more than 500 students, be situated entirely within a municipality where at least 25 percent of the land is protected, and have experienced a net loss in state school aid between the 2017-2018 and 2024-2025 school years. The funding amount is calculated by multiplying $250 by the number of protected acres in the municipality, with annual caps of $2.5 million for districts with fewer than 1,000 students and $5 million for those with more. This legislation aims to offset financial impacts on schools in these regions by supplementing existing state aid formulas.