Tax Hike Pending in Lower’s ’09 Budget

VILLAS — Lower Township Council introduced its proposed 2009 budget Monday, which includes a 1.8-cent per $100 of property value local purpose tax rate increase.
According to a summary prepared by Township Manager Kathy McPherson, the local tax rate for the year 2009 is 36.7 cents per $100 of assessed value compared to last year’s local tax rate of 34.9 cents. The local purpose tax levy increased $969,091.
The increases in this year’s budget come from several sources:
• Salaries and wages: $409,511
• Debt service: $131,150
• Liability/Workers Compensation Insurance: $165,925
• Pensions: $112,621
• Utilities: $105,000
• Terminal leave, unused sick time, vacation days for retiring employees: $85,000
Increases total $1 million.
The original budget distributed to council on January 15 anticipated a little more than $17 million for the local tax levy. Approximately $277,500 was added to that figure, bringing the total to $17,305,326.
Cuts were made to a number of departments to decrease personnel costs. One retirement in the police department is not being replaced.
An employee working a dual title replaced the Manager’s position. A part-time employee will be hired to replace a full-time employee who retired from the Construction Office. A part time position was removed from the Municipal Court budget.
Two full time positions requested in Public Works were removed from the budget. Two promotions requested this year were removed from the budget but will be considered for next year.
Other cuts included a new health insurance plan that was negotiated with the state resulting in a reduction to the budget line of $229,000.
McPherson’s statement said offsetting these cuts are several budget increases that are necessary to include in the current year. Debt service is increased by $127,900 for payment of new bond interest scheduled for this year. A Department of Environmental Protection fine of $72,500 was added.
Legal settlements in the amount of $130,000 are required in the current year. A cut in the amount anticipated for the surplus fund was made in the amount of $224,500.
The total assessed value of real property upon which the tax rate is based is $4,709,938,022 compared to $4,690,984,294 in 2008. The difference is $18,953,728 or a .40 percent increase. The increase is due to successful tax appeals and modified by new property valuations, adjustments in value made by the Tax Assessor and any lands transferred to public domain.
One cent on the tax rate is equal to $470,994 in budget expenditures.
The amount of revenue other than property tax used to support the budget is $3.6 million or 15.2 percent of the total budget.
The township completed 2008 with a surplus of $2.8 million. Of that balance $1.9 million is being applied to this year’s budget, leaving a balance of $947,578.
The tax collection rate for 2008 was 98.09% compared with 97.75% in 2007. This budget uses a 97.20% rate to compute the reserve for uncollected taxes in 2009.
A budget workshop is scheduled for March 30 at 6 p.m. Mayor Michael Beck said council would spend as much time as the public wants examining the budget at that meeting.
Township Auditor Leon Costello said cities and counties were facing rising expenditures and falling revenues.
The township’s tax levy is increasing by 5.9 percent, the smallest increase in four years. He said the tax levy increased 7.5 percent in 2008, 18.4 percent in 2007 and 7.2 percent in 2006.
Salary and wages are increasing 4.1 percent in 2009. In 2008, salary and wages increased 5.2 percent, in 2007 the increase was 5.5 percent and 6.9 percent in 2006.
Mayor Michael Beck said the budget needed to be examined carefully and a balance struck that would not endanger public safety or reduce services to an unacceptable level.
Ed Butler, vice president of Lower Township Taxpayers Association called for a zero tax increase.
“You know this township is hurting,” he said. “I know you’ll do the best you can.”
He said council “should do whatever has to be done,” to prevent a tax increase.
Beck said as much as $800,000 would have to be cut from the township budget to create a zero tax increase.
“We’d have to open the door and start throwing things off the ship,” he said.
Jack Sparks, former Mayor of Lower Township, said some residents have lost 40 percent of their property value and those over the age of 50 may have lost 40 percent of their lifesavings. He noted 49 percent of students in the Lower Township Elementary School District were living at the poverty level.
Sparks suggested the police department put one of its six detectives back on patrol as a cost savings. He suggested the police department be reduced to 42 members by attrition.
“All the ills of the past couple of years aren’t going to be solved in one budget,” said Beck. “We are not coming in here setting fire to town hall.”
A public hearing for the budget is scheduled for April 20 at 7 p.m.
A copy of the budget is available on the township Web site: www.townshipoflower.org