Borough residents could see tax rate increase from 60 to 62 cents
By: Jennifer Potash
The 2001 Princeton Borough budget will likely see an increase of about 6 percent.
Borough Administrator Robert Bruschi is expected to give the Princeton Borough Council a preview of the budget tonight.
The 2001 budget will likely be over $18 million, Mr. Bruschi said Monday.
Most of the increases are due to fixed costs such as the borough’s $300,000 payment on its debt service, salary increases, pensions and Social Security contributions "all of the kind of typical increases that are out of our control," he said.
Last year’s $17.5 million budget plan increased the tax rate from 60 cents to 62 cents per $100 of assessed property value.
The next question is how much revenue will be needed to offset any possible tax increases, which is an issue the borough has faced over the past few years, Mr. Bruschi said.
At this point, Mr. Bruschi said he does not have the figures available to calculate potential changes to the borough’s tax rate.
Many of the borough’s departments have kept their individual budgets at 2000 spending levels or just a percentage or two above that, he said.
The council typically approves the budget in June but has said it has been trying to move up the action.
In other business tonight, Mr. Bruschi is expected to give the borough staff’s response to the state Local Government Budget Review report released last year.
The local government report made various recommendations including merging the Princeton Borough and Princeton Township police departments and retaining a part-time staff attorney instead of a contracted attorney.