The Moorestown Township Council passed the 2015 proposed budget on first reading in a four-to-one vote on Monday, April 13. Residents will see a 2 percent tax rate increase if the proposed budget passes.
The total multipurpose tax is $0.412 cents per $100 of assessed property value, which is a total increase of eight-tenths of a cent. That represents a $36 annual increase for the average assessed home of $446,500.
The 2 percent increase is made up of a 1 percent increase for the library budget, which is a state requirement, and a 1 percent increase of the municipal budget.
The current fund for the budget is $23.8 million, with the water and sewer utilities fund budget at $9.2 million. According to Moorestown chief financial officer Tom Merchel, the municipal increase is due to a $203,000 increase in budget appropriations and a $233,000 decrease in revenues.
This decrease was due to the township using less surplus and collecting fewer delinquent taxes this year. The township is using $2.03 million in surplus this year, which is $85,000 less than last year, leaving $5 million remaining in surplus. According to Merchel, last year, the township made up for delinquent taxes not collected the previous year. That means there was less money to collect this year.
No staff or services were cut from the budget.
Councilmember Stacy Jordan said she felt it was a very responsible budget, and Councilmember Greg Newcomer was happy the budget didn’t cut any jobs or services.
They, along with Manny Delgado and Phil Garwood, approved the budget, and Mayor Victoria Napolitano voted “no.”
Napolitano chose not to elaborate on why she chose to vote “no,” however when questioned by citizen Robert Gorman, she did say she didn’t propose cutting anything from the budget.
The public hearing for the budget is scheduled for May 18 at 7:30 p.m. in the Town Hall. A copy of the budget will be available on the township website at www.moorestown.nj.us.
Other budgetary items passed were an ordinance on first reading to exceed the municipal budget appropriation limits and establish cap bank, and a budget resolution establishing a tax levy of the Moorestown Open Space, Recreation and Farmland and Historic Preservation Trust Fund Program.
According to township manager Scott Carew, the ordinance is only to establish cap bank, and the township isn’t even close to exceeding the 2 percent cap.
“This is not the part to exceed the municipal budget, this is the part to establish a cap bank. The township is nowhere close to coming to that. This just necessary for council to do,” Carew said.
Council unanimously passed the budget resolution establishing a tax levy of the Moorestown Open Space, Recreation and Farmland and Historic Preservation Trust Fund Program, which establishes the open space tax levy at $0.01 per $100 of assessed property valuation for 2014.
