By Lea Kahn
Township Council voted unanimously Tuesday to introduce Lawrence Township’s proposed $42.1 million municipal budget, which calls for a 6-cent increase in the municipal property tax rate.
Mayor Greg Puliti and Council members Jim Kownacki, Pam Mount and Michael Powers voted to introduce the budget, clearing the way for a June 9 public hearing and final vote on it. Councilman Bob Bostock was absent.
If Township Council passes the budget next month, the 2011 spending plan would raise the municipal property tax rate from 78 cents per $100 of assessed value to 84 cents.
The 6-cent tax rate hike translates into a $96 increase in the municipal tax bill on a house assessed at the township average of $161,292 from $1,258 in municipal property taxes in 2010 to $1,354.
Although the 2011 proposed budget is $800,000 more than the current budget, a decline in tax ratables accounts for 1 cent of the 6-cent tax rate increase.
Township officials attributed the decline in the total taxable value of township properties to property owners’ successful tax appeals last year.
About half of the $800,000 budget increase is attributable to increases in salaries, health benefits and pension contributions.
The remainder is due to the new red light camera fees. A company has been hired to install a camera and monitor it at the intersection of Route 1 and Franklin Corner Road to capture images of vehicles that do not stop when the traffic light turns red.
The cost will be offset by about $700,000 in anticipated fines.
Meanwhile, Township Council members were unhappy with the tax rate increase.
Mr. Powers said “everyone knows” about the state of the economy. He commended Municipal Manager Richard Krawczun for preparing the budget, adding that an exercise to explore what would happen if the budget was cut by $256,000 to reduce the tax rate increase clearly showed a negative impact on services.
Ms. Mount said she appreciated all of the hard work that went into preparing this budget.
It is rare for the tax rate to increase by 6 cents, she said. A 4-cent tax rate increase has been more typical, she said. However, this is the second consecutive year that the tax rate increase is 6 cents.
”These are hard times for everybody,” Ms. Mount said. “I hope the citizens realize we worked very hard to make things work out.”
Mr. Kownacki acknowledged that a 6-cent tax rate increase would be hard for many property owners, but “we are going to get through it.”
Mayor Puliti emphasized that the 2011 budget has a revenue problem.
He pointed to the state’s decision to hold onto much of the money that was intended to be returned to the municipalities for property tax relief, such as energy tax receipts. The state uses the money to balance its own budget, he said.
Until 1997, that money went directly to the municipalities, Mayor Puliti said. But now New Jersey calls that money “state aid,” even though it belongs to the municipalities, he added.
If Lawrence Township had that money, “we would not be looking at a tax rate increase,” he said.
Mayor Puliti said previously that Lawrence Township is owed $6.9 million in state aid for 2011, but the state has only given $3.9 million to the township. At stake is $2.9 million that the state is withholding.
Last year, Lawrence received $3.9 million in state aid instead of the full $6.8 million it was owed.
If Lawrence had received the full $6.9 million, the proposed 2011 municipal tax rate increase of 6 cents likely would not have been needed, he said.
The last time Lawrence Township received its full amount of state aid was 2001, when it received $5 million.
The township generates revenue from four sources surplus, miscellaneous revenues, delinquent property taxes and current property taxes.
The budget includes $5.3 million in surplus as a revenue source. The township had $6.9 million in surplus funds at the end of 2010.
Miscellaneous revenues includes license fees, construction fees and permits, hotel and motel room tax, state aid and grants. It totals $14.2 million.
The township also expects to receive $939,000 in delinquent property taxes. The source of delinquent property taxes is the payment of prior years’ property taxes.
The final piece of the puzzle is property taxes. The township expects to raise $21.5 million in property taxes for 2011.

