|
Council Expected To Vote On Budget Next Week
Proposed Tax Rate Increase Trimmed Down To 4.9 Cents
By Catherine Snipe
When the township budget was first revealed, the proposed spending plan included a 12 cent increase in the tax rate.
Next week, when the township council finally votes on the budget, they will decide whether to shrink that increase down to 4.9 cents.
Mayor Dan Kelly said proposing a 12 cent increase in taxes is a way to right the wrongs of previous budgets, which have left the township now scrambling for new sources of revenue.
Members of the township council disagreed, and asked the administration to find ways to reduce the proposed increase.
One of the ways was through school tax deferments.
Deferring school taxes works like this: The township collects all property taxes, including for the school district and county, and forwards the monies to the appropriate entities. Because the school district works on a different fiscal year than the township, about half of the money collected on behalf of the school district can be deferred, or "held," for a year until it is forwarded to the district. It is a legal and common practice in New Jersey that in some cases (but not all), can result in savings at the municipal level.
Doing so could help drop the proposed tax rate hike from 12 cents to 8 cents, according to Council President Stephen Acropolis, who supports the action. Deferring school taxes would put $1.9 million more toward the Brick budget, a total of $39 million in deferred school taxes. Business Administrator Scott Pezarras does not. He thinks it's a bad idea that could backfire next year; if conditions are right in the school district, it could actually hurt the township's 2008 budget.
This year, the township will go with deferring school taxes.
After the township council decided to defer school taxes, the issue became how to lower the township tax rate further.
The answer was to take more funds from the township surplus. Brick has excess money in a surplus fund, and taking money from this fund and putting it into the budget decreases the amount of reliance on taxes.
As a result, the tax rate is now a proposed 4.9 cent increase, said Pezzaras. That would make the township tax rate 90.2 cents for every $100 of assessed property value.
Kelly's original budget proposal called for less reliance on using surplus funds. The original proposal also called for few spending increases, other than salary increases built into staff contracts. That minimal increased spending remains intact, as the township council votes on the matter next week.
Debt service and police salaries are increasing by almost $1 million each. Pension bills will cost $890,000 more, and insurance, utilities, landfill and other salary costs add a more than, combined, $1 million to the budget.
The proposed township budget is about $70 million.
The township council is expected to vote on the budget and proposed tax increase at its regular public meeting this month.
| 
