LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Misleading statement

For the Board of Fire Commissioners, Fire District 2, Bordentown Township, Andrew Watson, chairman
   The commissioners of Fire District 2 in Bordentown Township must address a seriously misleading statement made by Mayor Dauber regarding the proposed township budget, published March 31, in this newspaper.
   Mayor Dauber is quoted, saying: “ . . .the money you pay for the general purpose tax (municipal tax) in the township, . . . provides you police, Public Works, EMS, fire, all of those things come out of that.” This statement is simply False! Only two of those services, police & Public Works, are paid through municipal property taxes.
   Fire District 2 does not receive One Cent of general purpose municipal taxes raised by the township. Fire districts are independent taxing authorities. The budget for Fire District 2, was overwhelming approved by the voters on Feb. 19. It is a budget within the legally mandated 2 percent cap, and represents a tax increase of only $0.006. In simple dollars, this means an average increase of about $18/year or $1.50/month for the taxpayers in the Fire District to have a full-time paid professional Fire Department.
   The commissioners sincerely hope the voters in Fire District 2 are not confused by the mayor’s misleading remarks and misrepresentations about the source of their Fire Service tax dollars.