More needs to be done to cut taxes. Better productivity and management of Township employees should be done. Also a total freeze on hiring also. The PD has hired new employees recently. During the mid afternoons many Township vehicles can be seen behind firehouses, parking lots etc, killing time to the end of the day. Tax increases are the number one reason people are leaving Wayne and there is over 300 homes in foreclosure. The Township needs to attract ratables and stop the exodus from Wayne. In the past alot of good ratables were turned away by over regulation and the local NIMBY's. State Farm building empty almost 20 years, have to ask yourself WHY?

Hmmm...what's the last day of school, after which lots of folks head off for vacation? Must be right around June 20.

Dan - can you tell us how much of the increase is attributable to municipal taxes? And how much is BOE? And how much is County? Would help to know which body politic is responsible for which tax increases.

Rob....I believe the $112 increase per household just pertains to the municipality portion only...the BOE and county are seperate issues I believe.....I wouldn't expect any material changes to the propsed $112 increase either...

Rob 34 k a year just in tax? Oh my! And to think this is one of the 13 original colonies! How in creation can those in gvt keep a straight face when confronted with such extreme taxes then demand more?

Rob...I believe when they refer to average household they use the median assessed value of Wayne residential properties . I do not know exactly but that value it is in the $300,000 area. So if your property assessed value is $600K for example, then you can expect your increase to be $224 for the municipal portion..

Rob,NOTHING IS AVERAGE IN THIS TOWN!!! Could not give a reason for the change in the meeting? Sounds like GAG ORDER written all over it, just worded different.Do the math,NINE positions saved $733,000 including FOUR POLICE OFFICERS? Somebody's calculater is off.Go on the web site and see how much the police make.$28.8 MILLION iN SALARIES!!! Raises this year,TOWNSHIP EMPLOYEES 0,POLICE (PICK A NUMBER BETWEEN 2 AND 14)

Paul confirmed the scheduling change on wednesday, why did it take a week to report it? Are the press releases that back-logged?

Additionally, the primaries are on tuesday. Is it a coincidence that this was postponed to after the primaries? Why are both Scott and Marilyn Rumana on the ballot? What is this all about?

Who are the INDEPENDENT AUDITORS for this xxx-xxxxxxxx town? Why is it such a secret? If you know, post it for heaven's sake, this is a free country. At least, it is supposed to be outside of this xxx-xxxxxxxx town. This is a municipality, not a corporation. It is selectively run, dependant on its' motivation, which seems to be quite nefarious.

Stewart, Soon we will be going back like the original colony.Living in tents and living off the land(plenty of deer in town) and paying our taxes with animal pelts.Rob, I'd spin the wheel and say between 35 and 36 thousand this year in taxes. Expand the garden and get another hen house.We all may need it!!!

Justice,Maybe the town should split the bill and take on the PR FIRM?

Rob - A number of us have been advocating a total hold on the line items for awhile now. I'd like to see an immediate 10% reduction in all departments, elimination of "luxury" services and consolidation where possible. I have interacted with city hall on a number of occasions in the past two years and I am amazed at how many people are still sitting around with nothing to do. It seems like the 1970s in there in some ways, with lots of idle time, banker's hours, etc. I don't see why a straight 10% reduction is out of the question, even before tacking elimination. There are a number of municipal services that are certainly nice to have but not if we can't afford them. The other HUGE problem is government regulation. Dealing with the town officials is unpleasant to say the least; they are so heavy-handed and so overzealous of their little fiefdoms. The rules and regs are SO over the top ridiculous it cannot be overstated. The municipal code needs to be shortened by about half. I haven't received the pamphlet about the town's budget, but I am willing to bet salaries are the overwhelming cost. The only way to lower that number is to reduce staff. As much as I love the volunteer fire and ambulence departments, they seem to have new equipment all the time. An EMT told me that they have more calls then ever, mostly backing up Paterson. Our capital expenditure is pretty significant for emergency services equipment. I am sure there is lots more to uncover.

Rob,If you ever get a chance and really want a reality check, drive down to the DPW garage and see how much WASTE their is sitting outside rusting away.OLD POLICE CARS,TRUCKS,BRAND NEW SALT BRINE SPREADERS THAT ARE NOT WORTH THE SALT THEY PUT IN THEM,AND THE LIST GOES ON!! WASTE,WASTE WASTE!!!!!

WW. Do you know why our volunteer EMT's are backing up Paterson?

My take on the budget presentation delay is that the primary is on June 5th. While there are no Councilmen or Mayoral race, there is a race for County Committee.The Wayne Regular Republican organization (WRRO) is being challenged by a new Republican organization here in town, the Republican Party of the People, of which I am part of. I think it is a political move, and probably a good one on their part. When you're in power, your calling the shots and can do what you want. Here is a clear example of what is being done benefits the party, not necessarily the people. Apparently, power and control trumps the people having an opportunity to hear the budget presentation. The budget meeting was to be tonight!

@ justice. Our volunteer fire department and first aid squad are part of mutual aid agreements with surrounding towns and the county of passiac it is very.common to for our services to go and help out other towns in a time of need and the other towns to help Wayne out when needed also ie. Brittany Chase and so on and so forth. Veichles for the fire department and the first aid squad are on a replacement schedule in my opinion not every ambulance needs to be a rescue ambulance and not every fire truck needs to have every bell and whistle, some fire engines are 25 years old before they are replaced. Although it seems like every year a new vehicle is being bought keep in mind how busy these VOLUNTEER departments are. Wayne is a big town to be VOLUNTEER and those VOLUNTEERS keep taxes down because you are not paying them salaries..

The town's fire rating could be based on the equipment we have. This could affect the cost of your homeowner insurance as well as the cost of the town's insurance on it's buildings, which is a component of the town's overall insurance costs.

Some equipment I'm sure is unnecessary some is required some is way over the top and I'm sure there are people who try to be aware of cost and some treat it like it isn't their money so why should they care.

All,Wayne Township is one of the BUSIEST FIRE DEPARTMENTS IN THE COUNTRY. I did say country not county.Art Smith (god rest his soul) complained one night at a council meeting that we should have a PROFESSIONAL FIRE DEPARTMENT!! Wayne has a PROFESSIONAL FIRE DEPARTMENT AND FIRST AID SQUAD!! They are just not paid for their services.Wayne, NEXT TIME you need the fire department or first aid squad,I hope they show up with their shiny new TOYS and assist you WITHOUT CHARGE!! Al, Wayne has the highest fire insurance rating possible without being a paid fire department.At the council meeting ,the respective commissioners gave their report for 2011.FIRE DEPARTMENT-OVER 1,700 CALLS/FIRST AID-OVER 4000.VOLUNTEERS STILL DO IT FOR FREE!!!!!

Nose I couldn't agree more I was not gonna go in to those stats because I didn't want to be that aggressive yet. No offense ment

God Bless the EMT's and Fire Fighters (alphabetical) who volunteer without expecting anything in return. Does Wayne have any female fire fighters? I know through experience that there are quite a few female EMT's.

To reiterate what Al had said, the Township of West Milford, actually published this info on their site:
http://www.westmilford.org/Cit-e-Access/webpage.cfm?TID=11&TPID=5945
YOUR HOME FIRE INSURANCE RATING

Each of the six volunteer fire companies of the Township Fire Department has a fire station, their own fire apparatus and carries water with them for initial fire suppression. Any structure fire would be considered an automatic multiple alarm and a minimum of two fire companies would be immediately dispatched to the scene. The fire stations are located throughout the Township to provide adequate fire protection to all areas. Most homes in the Township are within five miles of a fire station, with only a few exceptions.

Based upon the Fire Department's, equipment, man-power, water resources and response time, the Insurance Service Office established a fire insurance rating of six (6) for all residents in the Township whenever a residence is located within five (5) miles of a fire station.

What does this mean to the homeowner?

Whenever you are purchasing fire insurance for your home, you should first ask if the Insurance Company will use the ISO (Insurance Service Office) rating system. The ISO uses a 1-10 premium scale. One being the best rate - ten being the highest.

Since the Township was rated at a 6 - when the provider uses the ISO rate the resident will receive a slightly higher than medium insurance premium. Insurance Companies who do not use the ISO rate will consider a West Milford Township resident a 9 in an area without hydrants and an 8 if a hydrant is within 1000 feet of the residence. A substantial savings can be obtained by home-owners whose insurance provider uses the Insurance Service Office rates.

For further information regarding ISO rates, you may call the Bureau of Fire Prevention at 973-728-2840 or send an e-mail with your address requesting a form letter mailed to you to submit to your insurance provider to: fireoffice@westmilford.org.

ISO Website
http://www.isomitigation.com/ppc/0000/ppc0001.html#.T8amltVfHwo

Holding a dual elective office is statutorily prohibited pursuant to A-4326.

This act signed into law on September 5, 2007 states that “It shall be unlawful for a person to hold simultaneously
- an elective county office and
- an elective municipal office”.

This Council is paid to come up with innovative budgetary solutions. Rather your proposed budget calls for an additional $112 increase to a home assessed at $229,000.

Now I understand why the public was closed out from running in the Wayne Regular Republican Organization County Committee election. By suppressing our talent and creativity, the political insiders can continue the status quo. Isn't this breaking the law?

We don’t have a single watch dog on the County Committee, and that means the taxing and spending will continue.

Council representative Purcells, Sadowski, Mazzei, Miller-Ryan, and Councilman Jimenez all hold duel offices by serving:
- in an elective municipal office as Council representatives and
- In an elective county office as County Committee members.

To these Council members - maybe you were naïve but now that you know, please explain what step you plan on taking to correct your errors.

Al, ISO was closed for the evening. I will have to check during business hours. If memory serves me correctly, the highest rating for a town with a volunteer force is a 6, regardless of all the toys, bells and whistles. It is unfortunate that Wayne is unable to have a paid force, considering all the calls that our volunteers attend to.

leanbean, pacifying children with toys does not work. Insulting our volunteers with "toys" is counter-productive to everyone. Perhaps an intelligent re-distribution of funds is in order.

Justice, Their are two female firefighters in Wayne.One in Pompton Falls Fire Company #3, and one in Preakness Fire Company #4.

Jacqueline, this is unbelievable. These illegalities can void Wayne's insurance policies, costing taxpayers millions in case of losses and there are plenty of losses that have yet to be claimed.

Al, the lower classifications are mostly for paid and combination paid/volunteer departments. ISO was recently in Wayne Township to reevalueate our ratings. Don't NOSE if our rating went down or not.Will find out and get back to everyone.

Justice, The Township buys the trucks and some of the more expensive equipment (Gear,Air Paks,TIC,) Each firehouse is owned and maintained by the volunteers.The fund drive letter you get in the mail goes towards maintaining the firehouses.The Township gives each firehouse $30,000 to offset their finances (electric,nat.gas) The five firehouses and two first aid buildings are staffed by an all volunteer department and squad.IF THEY WERE PAID,you and everyone here would really have something to say.(not that we don't now).They save MILLIONS EVERY YEAR!! West Milford is like Wayne except more rural.Wayne has a fire hydrant every 500 feet (except some outer areas) West Milford only has hydrants in newer sub divisions and a few more populated areas.West Milford is 78 Square miles compared to Wayne at 27 square miles.

Al and Nose, Per ISO, effective May 1, 2012, the Township of Wayne is a Protection Class 4. Per ISO , any further information regarding this town's fire rating, can be obtained from the fire department, insurance company or paid subscription.

Al Scala is right on target. This is the headline that we should be talking about. I am originally from Chicago and this cancellation of the meeting, prior to the primary, is right out of the Chicago playbook. Jimenez, Miller , Scuralli, et al run this Township like it is their personal business. No transparency with secret/closed sessions prior to the open meeting where all of the business is really done. Read the meeting minutes. There is never any debate among these gangsters, never a nay vote nor any explanation about contract awards. This is so much like the late Richard J. Daly's way of doing business.When are the apothetic citizens going to wake up and throw these establishment Republicans out. The school Board is equally corrupt and inept and a detailed audit would find connections between these 2 bodies.

Warren, How long have you lived in Wayne?

Warren, if you know the name of the independent auditors for this town and BOE, please share it, as the township employees continue to be tight-lipped about this information, probably due to the gag orders.

Warren, They meet in the conference room before the meeting to DISCUSS what will be DISCUSSED at the meeting.Have to give them credit,they have great memories.Don't need LAPTOPS!!

@ Justice
Did you call townhall and ask to speak to Bob Miller or Neal Bellitt? Why are you saying people are tight lipped on who the auditors are? The audit for y/e December 31, 2010 was performed by Lerch, Vinci, and Higgins LLP of Fair lawn NJ...the audit results are easily found on the internet...

http://www.waynetownship.com/forms/2010audit.pdf

George, thank you for the info and the actual link. I did not speak with the people you mentioned; but the ones that I did converse with were apparently clerks. Additionally, they made the comment that it wasn't for public knowledge which is what irritated me the most. In business, I normally do not ask managers for routine information (which this is); therefore, I acted in the same light here. Once again, thank you.

Yes George, thank you very much for the link. I too have tried to find this information out by sending an email through the township e porytal to Mr Miller with absolutely no response what so ever. Anyone who thinks the township and council are acting above borad in these regards might well be mistaken. It seems to me OPRA is required at all times.

Stewart.Information like that has to go thru the clerks office for a OPRA request.Reports and other public records have to be this way unless you can find it on the internet.

Stewart...I replied to one of your posts yesterday, but it was deleted. What I said was in my opinion, that a government which is not open and transparent, is not an honest one. There is a reason why a government does not disclose anything or does not respond voluntarily to a request for information. That reason is not one you or I would like to hear. There is something to hide. A government like this needs to be defeated and taken out by free election. There is too much power and control held by too few. Here in Wayne, we need more checks and balances. One party rule is not healthy. We need some different eyes and ears on the Council. We need more of a balance. Hopefully Dan Hubbard in his infinite wisdom will not delete this as he did my earlier post.By the way, what ever happened to our first amendment rights? Oh, I forgot, we live in Wayne.

AL, I thought I was the only one who got DELEATED!! Don't feel so bad,did clean up my language,BUT the TRUTH about this town that I NOSE and speak my piece (sarcastic or not) should not be DELEATED!! People on PATCH need to NOSE the TRUTH,and the TRUTH HURTS SOMETIMES!! Any comments Dan? I NOSE your listening.

The Wayne Republican Party runs this town like the Politburo. They have started their smear campaign against the new counter Republican Party. Hopefully, some of these counter party folks will win some seats on the County Committee. It looks like the establishment party didn't think they would have to lift a finger to campaign. The new party must be gaining traction, resulting in the smear campaign.

Warren,As it gets closer to the primaries, the mud slinging and back stabbing gets worse!! Can't wait till it's over. The New Republican against the Old Republician?Maybe they can CHANGE for the better?

What was that song: old boss is the same as the new boss? A one party system is incestuous and should be illegal.