'The story raised serious allegations that must be addressed by the school district,' a spokesman for Gov. Chris Christie said
Several state officials, including Sen. Ray Lesniak and Sen. Michael Doherty, both pictured here, are calling for an investigation into whether the children of some Elizabeth school officials have been improperly receiving discounts on school lunches.ELIZABETH — The governor's office has asked the Elizabeth school district and "other authorities" to look into allegations that some of its high-ranking officials signed their children up for free and subsidized lunches paid for by taxpayers.
Four New Jersey lawmakers Monday also urged state and federal authorities to investigate the matter, and the district's own lawyers said applications for the federally financed program — intended to help low-income families — would be reviewed.
The calls for an investigation came a day after The Sunday Star-Ledger reported that the president of the Elizabeth Board of Education, a school principal and a supervisor of custodians have enrolled their children in the free or reduced lunch program even though they do not meeting federal income eligibility requirements.
"The story raised serious allegations that must be addressed by the school district and by other authorities as appropriate," said Michael Drewniak, a spokesman for Gov. Chris Christie.
In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, state Attorney General Paula Dow and Union County Prosecutor Theodore Romankow, three Union County Democrats said swift legal action should be taken against the three employees.
"Also, we ask that the district administration be investigated for complicity in the fraud and abuse," wrote Sen. Raymond Lesniak, Assemblyman Joseph Cryan and Assemblywoman Annette Quijano.
Among state Republicans, Sen. Michael Doherty (R-Warren) also called for an investigation.
"If The Star-Ledger story is true, it appears that highly paid school officials in Elizabeth are gaming the system for their own personal enrichment," Doherty said in a news release.
Kirk Nelson, general counsel for the school district, said school officials are working with the state Department of Agriculture, which oversees the National School Lunch Program, to review the applications disclosed in the newspaper article and to "tighten up anything we may have to do with regard to that."
The state Department of Agriculture has requested records of the applicants for the program from the district, a department spokeswoman, Lynne Richmond, said. She added that the information will also be reviewed with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Marie L. Munn, president of the Elizabeth Board of Education, has a son listed as eligible for free lunches.A spokesman for the state Attorney General’s Office, Paul Loriquet, said that while it was aware of the matter, it does not comment on potential investigations.
School records obtained by The Star-Ledger showed that children of the three high-ranking officials in the heavily state-supported district eat lunch for little or nothing, even though the parents’ gross incomes appear to exceed federal income-eligibility limits set by the federal government.
Marie L. Munn, president of the Elizabeth Board of Education who is a human resources administrator for a New Jersey nonprofit organization, has a son listed as eligible for free lunch. Her husband is also employed, according to her most recent financial disclosure statement.
Records also show Marlene Abitanto — who earns $73,350 as supervisor of custodians for the Elizabeth school district — has a daughter who received free lunches while in high school through the 2009-10 school year. The records show no lunch subsidies for the family this year.
And Carlos Lucio, a school principal who earns $103,163 a year, has a 6-year-old daughter scheduled to receive a subsidized lunch this year through the federal program, records show.
Under federal income-eligibility rules, which take into account the number of children in a household and total income, a family of four cannot earn more than $29,055 to qualify for a free lunch and $41,348 for a reduced-price meal. A household of eight people must show a gross income of less than $48,919 for children to qualify for a free lunch.
State and federal officials acknowledge there is little monitoring statewide of those who receive assistance under the federal lunch program. School districts are required to verify only 3 percent of applications to the program. The rest are taken at face value unless someone raises questions, Richmond, of the state Agriculture Department, said.
The Elizabeth school board remains the focus of an investigation by the Union County Prosecutor’s Office in the wake of a series of stories in The Star-Ledger earlier this year detailing accusations of widespread nepotism and patronage.
The prosecutor’s office declined to comment on the most recent article and would not confirm or deny an whether an investigation was under way.
Previous coverage:
• N.J. senator calls for investigation into Elizabeth school district's free lunch program
• Elizabeth school officials' kids don't pay full meal costs, records show
• At least $1.5M paid out secretly by Elizabeth schools, a fraction of workers' settlements
• Two investigations launched into Elizabeth school board
• Elizabeth Board of Ed candidates can spend donations from school staff on election, court says
• Investigation finds Elizabeth school board pressures workers to fill campaign coffers
• Former Elizabeth schools employee admits to defrauding district