Surplus and FEMA funds used to offset increases
By Charles W. Kim, Managing Editor
The township’s proposed $48 million budget is still being worked on after last week’s public hearing.
According to Chief Financial Officer Joe Monzo, the proposed plan presently has a 2.4-cent per $100 of assessed valuation increase, down from the initial 5-cent increase when the plan was first proposed to the governing body earlier this year.
Mayor Frank Gambatese and Township Council members have been holding weekly hearings on the budget for the last several weeks.
During the hearings, representatives from each department made their case for requested funding in the plan including new hires in the police department and a shared hire for both recreation and the senior center.
Mr. Monzo said the most recent drop in the increase came from federal FEMA funds and using some of the municipality’s surplus.
The council held a public hearing on the plan last week, but no one from the public attended the meeting.
A final vote on the budget is scheduled for May 14, according to Mr. Monzo.
If approved, the owner of a home assessed at $200,000 would pay $48 more in municipal property taxes this year.
The school district’s $136 million budget, approved by the Board of Education earlier this year, has no increase in the tax rate for that part of the tax bill.