Cape May Point Approves 1.2 Cent Tax Increase

CAPE MAY POINT – Borough Commission approved a 1.2-cent increase in the local purpose tax rate.
At a May 14 Borough Commission meeting, Auditor Glen Ortman said the tax rate increase represents $12 per $100,000 of property value. The owner of a $1 million home in the borough would see a tax increase of $120.
The budget totals $1.8 million. The tax rate is 25.1 cent per $100 of assessed property value, up from 23.9
cents last year.
Ortman said 69 percent of the borough¹s revenues are raised by taxes or $1.2 million. “Other Revenue” makes up 14 percent of revenues. This year¹s budget includes one-time revenue from a $197,000 grant for beach renourishment and
$64,000 repayment towards cost of a new fire truck.
Ortman said those items were brought in as revenue to pay down debt associated with those projects. While the borough¹s budget increased by $259,000, those two items were the largest portion.
He said 33 percent of the budget is used to pay down debt service. A total of 27 percent of the budget or $504,000 goes to salaries and wages and retirement contributions.
Ortman said 22 percent of the budget is used for departmental “Other Expenses,” most of which are insurance costs.
The borough¹s Department of Public Affairs and Public Safety has a total budget of $492,347 of which 49 percent or $238,000 is paid to Cape May for police protection. The cost of police services increased $6,957 or 3 percent as per the contract between the two towns.
Beach services are the second highest expense of the department at $184,350 or 37 percent, showing an increase of $5,950 or about 3.3 percent.
Ortman said the total budget for the borough¹s Department of Revenue and Finance was $284,850 with the largest item within being insurance at $58,800. The largest increases in the department were $8,900 in the municipal clerk¹s office and $4,300 in insurance costs.
The borough¹s Department of Public Works, Parks and Public Property budget totals $236,660 with Public Works using 32 percent or $75,000 of the budget.
Ortman said the borough¹s surplus account has been “very stable the last several years.” In 2009, the surplus available from 2008 was $360,039 with $105,000 used in the 2009 budget. The amount available at the end of 2009 was $357,272 with $95,000 of surplus used in the 2010 budget, he said.
The borough¹s percentage of tax collections has remained stable for several years, currently at 99.18 percent, up from 99.17 percent in 2009.
During public comment, resident Ann Brecker said she was concerned with 33 percent of the budget being used for debt service. Ortman said debt service increased from $398,000 in 2009 to $622,785 in 2010. He said it increased
because the borough was paying down debt with money received from grants and does not affect taxes.