By karl vilacoba
Staff Writer
BRICK — Over one-fourth of the total proposed school tax rate increase will be cut if a Township Council plan is officially adopted.
The council unanimously passed a resolution May 20 that recommends a 2.63-cent reduction from the Board of Education’s proposed 9.58-cent tax rate increase, which was defeated by voters on April 15. Township officials said the cuts will not result in the elimination of any programs or instructional positions.
The school board’s $112.6 million budget included a 7.249-cent increase in the general fund and a 2.331-cent hike in debt service expenditures. The owner of a home valued at $150,000 would have paid about $144 more in taxes this year.
The council’s plan calls for $1.2 million in cuts from the board’s package for a total raise of 6.95 cents per $100 assessed value. The owner of a home valued at $150,000 would pay about $104 more in taxes, if the board adopts the cuts.
The board scheduled a special meeting at the municipal building for the purpose of discussion and settlement of the defeated budget, but did not vote on the matter. Board member Frank Pannucci said the issue would receive a final vote at this week’s board meeting.
Board President Dr. William Boyan said support for the council’s cuts was not unanimous, but the plan is "something that we think we can live with."
Mayor Joseph Scarpelli pledged his help to Superintendent of Schools Thomas Seidenberger and the board to generate support for next year’s budget.
Of the council’s proposed cuts, $311,286 came in spending. Specifically, $198,000 came from teacher salary and cost differentials from retiring employees and their replacements; $60,000 from professional development; $26,256 from the elimination of an after school bus run; $15,030 from technical leases; and $12,000 from placing caps on ice time and pool facilities.
Other cuts to the tax rate came from $125,000 of anticipated surplus and $65,000 from anticipated grants. Another one-time, $700,000 payment deferral was included due to changes in accounting procedures recommended by the Ocean County Superintendent’s Office.
Councilman Stephen Acropolis voted for the cuts, but still criticized them as "accounting gimmicks" that will put off payments to the future.
However, most on the council said they considered the measures the best way to offer tax relief without damaging the district’s educational abilities.