After significant revisions by Council resulted in a 2014 municipal budget with no tax levy increase, Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh and the township administration have announced that repeating the same maneuver would jeopardize long-term budget sustainability and future municipal services.
The administration issued a budget proposal February 12 to Council that calls for an estimated 3.06 percent tax levy increase, or an increase of between 1.1 cents to 1.2 cents per $100 of assessed value. The total budget expenditure under the proposal is $38,118,000, an increase of 0.96 percent from last year’s $37,754,850 budget. To balance last year’s budget and avoid a tax increase, Council departed from administration recommendations and drew more resources from the fund balance and Uniform Construction Code fees, as well as projecting additional municipal court revenue (The News, March 7, 2014).
“Politically people look at zero, ‘oh that’s so nice,’ but we really need to think in the longer term,” said Hsueh at a press conference alongside Business Administrator Marlena Schmid and township CFO Joanne Louth. “I’m going to be in West Windsor the rest of my life. Whatever we do today will have an impact on the future.”
According to the proposal, the increase is within the state-mandated property tax cap after factoring in permitted exclusions and the cap bank, the use of which is a result from last year’s zero tax increase.
Last year’s dedicated tax rate was 38 cents, and an increase of 1.2 cents would amount to an increase of $60 for a $500,000 home, which is the average property value in West Windsor. (There is also a dedicated 2 cent municipal open space tax.)
In other words, the proposed increase would increase the average municipal tax paid by West Windsor households from $1,990 to roughly $2,050. While the township collects property taxes, the municipality only receives 15 percent of the total tax bill, with the majority going to the WW-P school district and the rest to the Mercer County.
The 3.06 percent tax increase represents an additional $693,142 in taxes from last year, increasing the total municipal tax levy to just under $23.4 million. According to the budget proposal, the increase is due to an increase of expenditures and a reduction in anticipated revenues. An increase in wages and other expenses accounts for an additional $363,150 in expenditures, and the administration is adjusting the amount of appropriated revenues from UCC fees and fund balance, a decrease of $329,992 in revenue.
The proposed increase is an estimate, as the administration is still awaiting a finalized total assessment of the township’s properties due next month.
According to CFO Louth, the township increased the tax levy by 0.6 cents in 2012 and 2013. There was no increase in 2014, when the administration recommended another increase in the half cent range, and that has been deferred to this year’s increased levy.
“Long term we will not be able to provide the services we provide today if we don’t have the small increases,” Louth says. The statewide 2 percent property tax levy cap is a factor, she explains, which restricts the township’s ability to raise levies in response to large shortfalls. In light of this the administration believes that imposing small increases year over year is the most sustainable strategy.
The administration is also concerned with the diminishing fund balance, which the township draws on to support the budget. The fund balance is a cash account that also serves as a rainy day fund. It must be replenished by excess township revenue at year’s end for use in the next year.
The fund balance at the end of 2014 was at $6.4 million, down $200,000 from 2013 and an additional $400,000 from 2012. The fund balance was at $7.8 million in 2008 and has decreased six of the past seven years. “Council used more from the fund balance to balance the budget [last year],” Louth says. “Our idea is to use less.”
The administration wants to draw less revenue from the fund balance than what was appropriated in 2014. For the 2015 budget, the administration is again recommending $4.435 million, which was also the figure appropriated in 2011 and 2013. Last year the administration recommended appropriating $4.435 million from the fund balance for 2014, and Council increased the appropriation by $185,000 to $4.62 million. The administration says the Council tied the additional appropriation to an anticipated increase of $100,000 additional municipal court revenue, but only an additional $6,000 materialized in 2014. Schmid says the municipal court and police department do not have quotas.
Hsueh relates the issue to his priority to protect the township’s AAA bond rating. Hsueh says the bond rating allows the township to borrow at a lower interest rate for capital improvements. The high rating is also attractive to businesses.
The capital expenditure budget for 2015 totals $6.365 million. The new fire and emergency services facility is expected to cost $1.9 million, though it will be funded by liquor license sales. Roughly $2 million is slated for roadway and traffic safety improvements. Residents on Cranbury Road waiting for sidewalks may have to wait, as no capital expenditures are budgeted until 2016. A total of $2.5 million is budgeted from 2016 to 2020 for Cranbury road improvements.
Mayor Hsueh expects Council to oppose tax increases. The budget proposal notes 2015 is a Council election year. The Council terms of Council President Bryan Maher, George Borek, and Kristina Samonte are set to expire this year, though Samonte has stated she does not intend to run for reelection.
“I’m sure Council will cut down to zero increase again,” Hsueh says. “Council can do whatever they want. I’m not thinking of political positions, I’m thinking of long term. Artificially we got down to 0 percent increase, but you create problems when you exaggerate your revenue and cut your budget.”
Hsueh is holding a town hall meeting Saturday, February 21, at 2:30 p.m. at the municipal building to answer questions from the community, and the first of five planned budget work sessions will follow the Monday, February 23, Council meeting.
#b#Politicians, Take Your Marks#/b#
Elections are more than eight months away, but electioneering was on full display at the February 9 Council meeting.
Responding to public comments on a wide variety of concerns, Council President Bryan Maher repeatedly emphasized Council does not oversee the township’s day-to-day operations and that upset residents should contact the mayor and other administration members.
After a presentation by Arin Black, the executive director of the West Windsor Arts Council, regarding the need for additional space currently being occupied by EMS vehicles, Maher said: “The only thing holding us up in my view, and I hate to point at Ms. Schmid [Marlena Schmid, the business administrator], but getting EMS stuff out of there, we’ve asked for an EMS building and we’re still waiting on that.”
Maher also cited the slow pace of the administration after resident Samirah Akhlaq inquired on the status of the Cranbury Road sidewalk report. “We can’t make the administration work faster, it’s not what we do,” Maher said.
Schmid said the administration recently received a consultant report on Cranbury Road that must be reviewed and re-assesed by both the county and the consultants.
As for the status of a permanent space for EMS vehicles, the administration is soliciting bids for architectural design services for a new EMS building adjacent to the fire station on Clarksville road.
Another public commenter, John Church, informed Council that he is surveying the number of street lights in the township to locate underlit streets.
Maher referenced Church’s efforts to again express discontent with the administration: “If the mayor doesn’t want to do it, we’ll do it with our own resources. It’s frustrating, and I hope the public is paying attention when it comes to election time.”
#b#Arts Council at Capacity.#/b# Noting the Arts Council’s memorandum of understanding with the township, executive director Arin Black asked when the EMS vehicles would be moved from the bay garages adjacent to the Arts Center.
In her presentation, Black said more than 70 percent of the Arts Council budget funding comes from earned income streams. With a budget that has increased to $400,000 last year, the nonprofit Arts Council needs additional space to maximize income streams.
“We want to be able to continue bettering the community and allocating monies in the township capital improvement budget will allow us to do this,” said Black, adding the organization is working on a timeline for a capital campaign for future expansion.
In addition, the Arts Council requested that the township hire an architect to analyze how the bay garages would be converted into usable space. Schmid said budget funds have been allocated for this.
#b#Vaccinate Against Measles.#/b# Township health officer Jill Swanson updated residents and Council on the nationwide measles outbreak. She recommends everyone receives vaccination, as measles is highly communicable and can linger on surfaces for hours.
Through February 6 there has been one case of measles, an unvaccinated infant, in northern New Jersey, and 121 cases nationwide.
“If you’re not vaccinated and you have not had it in the past, it is very easy to acquire it — 90 percent exposed will become ill,” Swanson said.
State law requires two measles vaccinations before children enter kindergarten. School nurses review vaccination records as each child matriculates, and the nurse from the municipal health department conducts yearly vaccination audits. These include audits of private schools and day cares. Swanson says those traveling abroad should check the Centers for Disease Control travel advisory website in advance.
#b#Rosen Property Open Space Ordinance Introduced.#/b# Council also approved the introduction of ordinances finalizing the open space acquisition of the 25.12-acre Rosen property. Previously reported as 27 acres, the property is located on the corner of Clarksville Road and Meadow Road with an acquisition cost of $996,900. County open space funds are expected to offset half the cost, and the purchase also concludes ligation filed against the township by Richard Rosen. A public hearing is set for the Council meeting Monday night, February 23, at 7 p.m.
In other news, Council approved two landscape maintenance contracts. Greenleaf Landscape Systems and Services had its contract to landscape cul de sac and median islands and street trees renewed for $82,520. Clintar Landscape Management’s contract, to landscape detention basins and open space, was renewed for $67,075.
And for the second straight week, a professional services appointment was pulled from the agenda. Council did not approve the reappointment contract of William E. Antonides Jr., an accountant in Wall Township, for $26,850. His appointment was to fulfill annual audits mandated by the state.
