Tax Increase Drops from $99 to $89

The average household’s 2011 municipal budget increase went from $99 to $89 thanks to an amendment that was approved at Wednesday’s council meeting.

The tax levy portion of the budget is slightly less than $56.5 million. The total budget is approximately $76.6 million.

“It is our best effort. We’re still maintaining the services we’re providing to everything and it’s the lowest increase we’ve had in a decade,” said Councilwoman Nadine Bello, chairperson of the council’s budget committee. “We looked at everything. We examined the budget division by division. A lot of the reduction came out of eliminating small items.”

Nine full-time positions were eliminated from the budget, including the deputy chief of police and three detectives, for a total savings of $733,000 in salaries.

The township’s insurance costs increased from $9.2 million in 2010 to more than $10.9 million for 2011, a 19 percent increase. The township’s pension payment also increased $843,000.

The township must also absorb more than $300,000 in flood costs. Governor Chris Christie’s appeal to the Federal Emergency Management Agency to declare the March flood event a major disaster was denied. Christie appealed the decision in May.

The township’s white-collar workers will not see an annual salary increase this year. The approximately 100 workers will see an increase of 1 percent in 2012 and 2013 and a 1.5 percent increase in 2014. The town’s blue-collar workers agreed to the same increases earlier this year. The township is still negotiating with the Policemen’s Benevolent Association Local 136.

Mayor Christopher Vergano and the township’s administration worked to get the tax increase as low as it could. The budget committee reviewed the budget before introducing it and the amendment.

“I think the mayor and the administration did their due diligence and they came in under the cap. Unfortunately, if we received FEMA funding the budget would have been reduced more but in light of that I think we did a good job,” Bello said. “We looked at everything.”

The budget is approximately $956,000 under the state-mandated 2 percent increase cap. The township lost about $41 million in ratables due to tax appeals this year.

The governor and state lawmakers agreed earlier this year to limit property tax increases to no more than 2 percent unless voters approve a higher amount.

The council approved the budget 5-2.

“I just think that they had a lower number not something that had a higher number,” said Councilman Al Sadowski, who voted against the budget. “Taxpayers have had enough and we need to reduce budgets. I think they need to find some ways to reduce spending.”

A copy of the 2011 budget amendment is attached to this article.