Municipal property taxes will remain flat for the 11th consecutive year in East Windsor Township.
The East Windsor Township Council unanimously adopted a $23.4 million municipal budget for 2023 at its July 5 meeting. The vote followed a public hearing on the spending plan.
Officials said the property tax rate will remain at 43 cents per $100 of assessed value. The owner of a house assessed at the township average of $259,455 will pay $1,124 in municipal property taxes.
Municipal property taxes are one item on a property owner’s total tax bill, which includes East Windsor Regional School District property taxes and Mercer County property taxes.
Municipalities rely on several sources of income to support the budget. Those sources include the use of surplus funds and miscellaneous revenues such as licenses, fees and permits, municipal court fines and costs, and a hotel tax. The rest is raised through property taxes.
Township officials will collect $12.3 million from East Windsor’s residential and commercial property owners to support the 2023 budget.
The 2023 budget includes revenues from alcoholic beverage licenses totaling $32,950; municipal court fines and fees totaling $179,253; and a hotel tax that will raise $195,664.
In addition, the township will receive revenues from construction code fees totaling $387,572.
Shared service agreements for animal control, the senior citizens center and police dispatching services will generate $264,262.
Officials will apply $3.6 million from the township’s surplus fund to support the budget.
State aid has remained flat at $3.5 million since 2010, but the township will receive $183,480 from the state’s municipal relief fund.
On the spending side, the budget allocates $4.9 million for East Windsor Police Department salaries and $323,988 in other expenses, such as general administration, support service and training.
The budget for the Department of Public Works allocates $640,455 in salaries and $662,490 in other expenses. This includes $176,375 for maintenance of the municipal fleet of cars and trucks.
The budget also earmarks $255,059 in salaries for the Recreation Department, the Senior Center and maintenance of parks. Under the category of “other expenses,” the budget sets aside $58,784 for the Senior Center and $24,805 for maintenance of parks.
Also, the budget includes $1.6 million in contributions to the Police and Firemen’s Retirement System of New Jersey and $544,989 to the Public Employees Retirement System.