$19.11 million budget increases
parks, recreation funding
By:Laura Toto
The Township Committee was expected to approve the introduction of $19.11 million municipal budget Wednesday night that would keep the municipal tax rate at 27.9 cents.
If approved as proposed, township spending will increase by 5 percent from last year’s budget of $18.2 million. While the tax rate will not increase under the proposed budget, property tax bills could increase because of increased assessments, Mayor Joseph Tricarico said. The owner of a home assessed at $275,000 will pay $767.25 in municipal taxes.
|
‘We are going to have additional things done and there is still not an increase in taxes for the second year in a row.’ John Gelardi, Deputy Mayor |
The stable tax rate is possible because "Hillsborough has been run very efficiently," the mayor added.
The budget proposes to increase spending for parks. Deputy Mayor John Gelardi, liaison to the Finance Department who worked on the budget, said the budget includes $97,000 to purchase new equipment for parks maintenance.
The Recreation Department also will receive additional funding because the department’s employees will be in charge of this year’s annual Memorial Day celebration and parade, which has been run by the Rotary Club in the past.
The Rotary Club usually supplies the township with the tent free of charge, but this year it wanted the township to pay $4,500.
Last year the committee decided to use about $3 million in township surplus to reduce the local tax rate, resulting in a small decrease in the tax rate. The estimated surplus this year is $3.95 million, and the budget proposal again uses about $3 million, but the tax rate will stay the same.
"If we have a sizable surplus we should use it and not have it hang around for no reason," Mr. Gelardi said.
The budget proposes to fill additional staff positions, including two new Public Works staff specifically for the Parks Division, a commercial appraiser to ensure there is a balance between commercial tax and residential tax appraisals, an additional prosecutor for DWI cases, a part-time violations clerk and a part-time bus driver for the senior bus.
"We are going to have additional things done and there is still not an increase in taxes for the second year in a row," Mr. Gelardi said.
A public hearing on the budget will be held at the committee’s meeting on April 11.