By Charles W. Kim, Managing Editor
Officials unveiled the district’s proposed 2012-13 budget, which would include a 4.9 cent per $100 of assessed valuation increase, Monday night.
”(This budget) is very preliminary,” Business Administrator Anthony Tonzini said during Monday night’s Board of Education meeting. “We haven’t made any decisions yet.”
Board member and chairman of the Budget Committee, Arthur Robinson, said the committee developed the proposed spending plan through 12 to 13 subcommittee meetings since the beginning of the year and enlisted the help of a Citizen Budget Advisory Committee as well.
Mr. Tonzini said the three main factors in developing the plan consisted of a net increase of state aid amounting to about $4 million, the state mandated budget cap maximum increase in spending of $1.9 million and the decrease in the township’s ratable base of 2.3 percent.
The last factor, according to Mr. Tonzini, started the process with the district needing a 7 cent per $100 of assessed valuation increase just to keep the tax levy the same as last year at $103 million.
”That was our starting point,” Mr. Tonzini said.
Superintendent Dr. Gary McCartney explained the loss of township ratables as a pool that is filled two-thirds of the way.
Each year, there is a loss in the value of the township through tax appeals and the loss of businesses and homes that is like a leak in the pool so more water must be added to keep the pool filled at the same level, Dr. McCartney said.
The bright spot in the process is the net increase in state aid of $4 million, which brings the required increase down, below 5 cents, Dr. McCartney said.
According to officials, the district could raise the rate by 4.9 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, resulting in a tax increase of about $100 for the owner of a $200,000 home, or the district could attempt to cut almost 40 more positions to save $2.7 million.
The average cost for each of the positions is about $70,000, according to Mr. Tonzini.
In either case, the tax levy would remain the same, Dr. McCartney said.
The district has cut around 200 positions in the last several years and has only had one year during that time where the township’s value has not dropped and there was no tax rate increase that year, Dr. McCartney said.
Due to the change in moving the school elections to November, residents will not be voting on the budget at the polls in April.
Mr. Robinson said the board, however, is maintaining the same budget review process as it has in prior years when it was on the ballot.
A public hearing on the spending plan is scheduled for the March 26 board meeting at Crossroads North Middle School.

