HOLMDEL — The Township Committee last week introduced a $14.5 million 2002 budget with a proposed 3.5 cent tax.
The spending plan was approved 3 to 1, with Committeeman Terence Wall voting against the introduction. The public hearing will be held April 22.
Wall voted against the introduction because the budget uses $600,000 in surplus from the dedicated sewer utility budget.
The township collects sewer fees from residents and, in turn, pays the Bayshore Regional Sewerage Authority in Union Beach for sewer service. Residents currently pay $400 a year for sewers.
"I’m not convinced we should use the sewer fund because it was dedicated to a specific purpose," Wall said.
Chief Financial Officer Joe Annecharico said it was just a recommendation, and that the township has no other funds from which to get money.
Wall said that it was a question of should they use the money, and if so, how much should they use.
Deputy Mayor Russell Dronne agreed. Dronne said later that committee members will be looking at the budget individually, so they can bring the numbers down and hopefully not use the sewer surplus.
"I want to make sure that we run [the township in a] lean, but efficient [manner]," Dronne said. "We want to make sure that we give people $1.10 in value for every dollar of taxes."
Mayor Art Davey said the decision was made to tap the fund in order to "cushion" the budget.
As in many towns, Holmdel has been hit hard by rising insurance costs, salaries and a loss of grant money from the state.
Health insurance costs have risen $158,490; property and casualty insurance, $46,630; and police salaries, $341,020. Dronne also said that the township lost approximately $25,000 in Clean Communities Program funding.
Dronne also said that the police salaries have increased because the township hired four officers. But, he added, a few officers will be retiring over the next couple of years.