The Jersey City Independent "

- School Aid Down $23 Million: The Jersey City school district will lose $23 million, or 4.9 percent, of state school aid, according to figures released by the state Department of Education yesterday. The district will still receive nearly $449 million in state aid. “It could have been worse,” Board of Education member Gerald McCann tells the Journal. Read more on the school aid statewide here.

- Teachers’ Contract on BOE Agenda: Speaking of schools, members of the Jersey City Education Association — who have been without a contract since Sept. 1 — plan to pack tonight’s Board of Education meeting, since some school board members are balking at ratifying the contract the union worked out with Superintendent of Schools Charles Epps and other administration officials in mid-December.

- Webb-Washington to be Sentenced: Former Ward F City Council candidate and housing activist LaVern Webb-Washington, who pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges in October, will be sentenced today.

- Sketch of Jitney Attacker Released: The JCPD has released an artist’s sketch of the man wanted for shooting a jitney bus driver in the back near Journal Square and then hijacking the vehicle and running the victim over as he fled.

- Ferris Teacher Arrested: A 41-year-old special education teacher at Ferris High School has been arrested on charges he masturbated in front of a 15-year-old boy in a school bathroom.

- Moloney’s Dishes the Corned Beef: Moloney’s Meat Market on Newark Avenue served over 300 corned beef sandwiches yesterday as part of a St. Patrick’s Day tradition that stretches back four generations at the family-owned establishment.

- Seen This Cat? One of the rescued cats at The Kennedy Dancers studio on Central Avenue has been missing since Tuesday afternoon, just days after it had major hip surgery.

- Man Charged With Peeing on Women: The JCPD has arrested a 27-year-old Secaucus man on charges he followed young Hispanic women on the street and urinated on the backs of their legs in as many as seven separate incidents since late December.

Today’s Best Bets:

- Free movies continue at the Warehouse tonight with Sabrina (7:30 pm), while there is free live music at three venues: Jessica Rose is at Bar Majestic (7:30 pm), Manouche Bag is at Madame Claude’s (8 pm) and A.M.P. is at O’Haras Downtown (9 pm).

In Statewide News:

- Legal Action for Marriage Equality: Six same-sex couples will ask the New Jersey Supreme Court to allow same-sex couples to marry, in the wake of the state Senate’s “no” vote on the issue in January.

- Health Care Problems Hit Middle Class Hard: Nearly 35,000 middle-class New Jersey residents lost their health insurance in the last eight years while the cost for coverage rose dramatically, according to a new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

- Budget Fallout: Thousands of members of the Communications Workers of America will take to the streets today to protest Gov. Christie’s proposed budget cuts; meanwhile, Rutgers University stands to lose 15.1 percent in direct state aid under the budget. In real dollars, it would be the smallest amount of aid for the state’s largest public school since 1994. And while it is likely cold comfort to most, particularly those who will be hit hardest by the governor’s proposed cuts, Gannett reminds us that “New Jersey isn’t alone in facing serious financial problems,” with states all over the country “slashing spending and cutting services to cope with the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.”

- Pension Reform on the Docket Today: Legislation that would make public worker pension and health-care benefits less generous is slated to go before a New Jersey Assembly panel today.

- State Gets School Construction $: The U.S. Treasury Department has announced that New Jersey has been allocated $216 million in federal bonds to finance school construction.

- Rebate Program Criticized by Small Biz: A New Jersey appliance-rebate program starting April 1 is being criticized by some retailers who say it favors specific appliance sellers during a time when the entire industry has struggled with a pullback in consumer spending.

- South Jersey Nuke Plant Threatens to Close: Exelon Generation, the owner of the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant, has been ordered to build cooling towers to comply with a new waste-discharge permit the state Department of Environmental Protection approved in January. But the company is now threatening to close the plant if the state doesn’t remove the requirement.

- Lawyer Fund Pays Out Nearly $1M: A handful of misbehaving lawyers were responsible for most of the nearly $1 million tab run up by the New Jersey Lawyers’ Fund for Client Protection during the fourth quarter of 2009.

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