Somerset County’s freeholders have introduced a proposed county budget for 2016.
The freeholders say the budget "preserves needed services to the county’s more than 332,000 citizens with minimal tax impact."
“We’ve continued to streamline our operations so we can provide essential services to residents while maintaining Somerset County’s triple-A bond rating and keeping the property tax impact to a minimum,” said Freeholder Director Patricia Walsh.
The increase in spending covered by the state-mandated rises 1.51 percent, within the 2-percent limit. County officials say the increase in county property taxes on the “average” home of $411,000 would be $9.
A public hearing on the proposed $239,845,899 budget will be held Tuesday, May 10, at 6:30 p.m. in the third-floor meeting room of the county administration building at 20 Grove St., Somerville.
To view the full budget document on the county website, go to http://bit.ly/2016BudgetIntro. To see the budget overview, visit http://bit.ly/2016BudgetFacts.
Since 2008, the total number of county employees has been reduced by 8 percent (to 1,220 from 1,329), and the county’s capital expenditures have dropped by more than 47 percent.
The county says the proposed budget:
– Maintains 248 center-lane miles of county roads and 752 county-owned bridges;
– Maintains 38 park, recreation and open-space areas encompassing 14,500 acres.
– Fully funds 911 communications dispatch for 20 municipalities (since 2008 this shared service has saved participating towns well over $3 million);
— Funds nearly 200 shared services with local governments and other organizations in the county;
– Partially funds budgets for the county Vocational-Technical Schools, Raritan Valley Community College, Board of Social Services and Park Commission, and
– Fully funds the county jail and the county emergency services training academy.
“In addition to 911 dispatch for 20 towns, we provide curbside recycling collections in 19 municipalities, transportation services to three towns and four nonprofits, vehicle maintenance to 11 communities, vehicle fueling to more than 50 agencies and a statewide cooperative purchasing program,” said Freeholder Patrick Scaglione, finance liaison. “These are value-added services that benefit taxpayers every day.”
After following the nationwide housing slump for several years, ratables in Somerset County saw another slight rebound of 1.3 percent this past year, from $57.4 billion to $58.1 billion. That means the cost of the budget will be spread among more entities.
The amount to be raised by taxation would increase 1.99 percent in the 2016 budget, to $185.8 million. The county tax rate would rise to 31.9 cents, from 31.7, per $100 of assessed value.
