Plainsboro was not spared in the governor’s cutbacks to state aid, as the township lost $423,000 in state aid as it finishes compiling its proposed 2010 budget.
Township Administrator Robert Sheehan will be presenting a budget to the Township Committee on Wednesday, April 14, that will reflect the decrease in state aid. The township was receiving $2.034 million in state aid, but with the cuts this year, it will receive only $1.62 million.
While the cutbacks were significant, the actual budget process was not entirely turned upside down, according to Sheehan. “We didn’t know what to expect, so we brought the budget to a point and waited,” he said. “Now, we’re trying to deal with it.”
Still, the loss presents a challenge. “We’re moving in a direction that we haven’t before — $423,000 is a big number in a budget of our scale,” said Sheehan. “This has absolutely been the most challenging budget, probably that the township has known. We expect it’s going to get more challenging as we go along.”
Regardless of the reduction in state aid, the township also has to deal with the levy cap. “We need the tools here to deal with the reductions,” said Sheehan. “We struggle with health costs like everyone else. We need to bring these things in check for us to have a fighting chance.”
Further, “we need reform in particularly the police arbitration process,” he said, saying those caps need to be considered during the collective bargaining process.
In addition, “we need fewer mandates from the state to add expenses to us. There’s a whole series of these tools that the League of Municipalities has been fighting for.”
Sheehan said officials are looking to minimize the tax impacts while maintaining services. The township budget is not large, and it runs a lean operation, but Plainsboro has already reduced 10 to 12 positions over the last few years, Sheehan said. “We’ve been moving in the right direction.”
Most of the discussion during the March 24 meeting, however, was focused on the school budget, which took a $7.56 million hit in state aid cuts. Mayor Peter Cantu said he thought it would be very challenging to account for the cuts. “So you can expect, I think, a major hit on property taxes,” he said.
Cantu also said that while the state aid cut to Plainsboro is significant, the $7.56 million the school district lost is much more detrimental. “It hurts those who can least afford to be hurt.”
He urged his fellow Township Committee members to pay attention to school budget presentations because “we may ultimately get this budget.” If the school budget fails, it will be sent to the West Windsor and Plainsboro governing bodies for further cuts and revisions.
“I hope it wouldn’t go down,” he added. “If it comes to it, we need to be as knowledgeable as we can.”
