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LAGGING REVENUE BLAMED FOR TOWN'S 7-CENT TAX RATE HIKE
By Lauren Puglisi
The municipal tax rate will rise 7 cents per $100 of assessed value on a home, under the 2008 municipal budget adopted last week by the Township Council. The rise will mean an increase of approximately $50 per year on the tax bill of the average Manchester home.
On September 24, 2007, Municipal Accountant Joseph Faccone and Chief Financial Officer William Garofalo received approval from the governing body with regard to the 2008 State Fiscal Year budget.
Last week, Manchester officials presented the council with an amended budget. The $28.96 million spending plan proposed last year has been increased to $29.444 million for the year 2008.
According to Garofalo, those increases were handed down by the state. Although Manchester's governing body kept the town's spending stable, the main cause behind the budget increase was a drastic decline in township revenues.
"The changes in the budget were only those mandated by the Division of Local Government Services. There were about six very small changes that only had a net effect of a $16,000 decrease in the tax levy," Garofalo said.
Though the budget rose, cuts were made to the town's spending plan, too.
For some, among the most noticeable cuts are those made to aid traditionally given to Manchester's emergency services. Councilman Brendan Weiner expressed concern with the budget changes.
"Upon first reading this adoption, I was immediately unhappy with the changes that were made within our local emergency services," Weiner said. "I strongly feel that Manchester should provide members of the (emergency services) everything that they need."
Garofola agreed with Weiner's statement but noted that the changes in the emergency services were mandated by the state and would not have been changed if they were not otherwise directed to.
"Historically, we have always given the emergency services $35,000 per company in the town," Garofalo said. With three fire companies in town, that averaged out to $105,000; two first aid squads came to $70,000. This year, he said, the town was obligated to cut that down by the statute of the state, which allowed for only $30,000 to go to each organization.
Some of the changes made to this year's budget were in the Child Passenger Safety and Municipal Alliance Grants.
Garofalo said the town received the Child Passenger Safety grant after the budget was already calculated. Officials decided to add it to the adopted copy because it will have no direct affect on the 2008 budget, as money revenues will be coming both in and out of township funds.
"The Municipal Alliance grant was reduced to $12,000 from last year's original $16,000 because the state authorized a $4,000 decrease," Garofalo said.
Some of the township's cost saving measures included the elimination of overtime salaries, cuts in recreations programs and putting a hold on filling open township positions.
"It is unfortunate that Manchester's budget has been cut. We are living in an economy of decline but I must say that the mayor and council controlled the township's spending to a great extent. The major increases in the 2008 budget were those that were mandated by the state," Garofalo said.
Connie Lauffer, the township's business administrator, thanked Faccone and Garofalo for the work that they put forth in amending the new budget.
"I know this has been the worst couple of months for making the Manchester's budget changes and it is just the beginning. I am sure the amendment in next year's budget will be just as difficult, if not more so," Lauffer said.
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