Middletown Township Budget Proposed With Slight Increase

The $66,418,877 Middletown Township budget for 2013 was introduced Thursday with a slight increase for residents. 

A 2.2% increase in the tax levy can be mostly blamed on the unanticipated costs of Superstorm Sandy on Oct. 29, said Township CFO Nicholas Trasente

The tax rate for municipal purposes would rise .014, from .482 to .496. For the owner of a house assessed at $375,500, the township's 2013 average, the municipal portion of the property tax bill would rise by $52.57 to $1,862.48

Trasente said that home values have fallen by $4,500 since last year, so the homeowner of the same average house who had seen his assessment adjusted accordingly between 2012 and 2013 would pay $30.88 more a year. 

Mayor Gerard Scharfenberger commended the administration for the lean budget. "If you had told us we would come in at this rate, with such a solid budget, on Oct. 30, we would have all shaken our heads and said there is no way," said the mayor. "To be able to absorb the tremendous loss of revenue, and the increased expenses that we were able to, is really a testament to how well the town is run, how resilient we are, and how we are able to accommodate these sort of unexpected tragedies as they occur." 

Trasente said the proposed 2013 municipal budget appropriations rose by about 4.38 percent over last year, to $66,418,877 from $63,629,643. If he could have removed the costs of Hurricane Sandy and Irene, the appropriations would have increased only .76 percent. "I didn't want the storm to take away from how efficient you have become here in reducing our budget's increases to the absolute minimum we can deal with," said Trasente. 

The total cost of paying down Sandy is estimated to be $14 million, which the township is doing in stages over the next 5 years. After anticipated FEMA reimbursements, which are expected to cover 75% of the storm's total cost, Sandy's drag on the budget will be $500,000 each year. 

The municipal portion of the Middletown represents 21 percent of the property tax bill. The school board accounts for 62 percent; the county is 13 percent; the Library Board is 2 percent and Municipal Open Space fund is 2 percent.

So far, the school tax rate was approved by the school board on March 21 and will rise by 1 percent in 2013, costing the average taxpayer about $53 a year more. The Monmouth County budget was introduced with no increase for residents.

Besides Sandy, other major expense in the budget was the cost of health care for employees, which increased by $630,000 for a cost of $8.4 million, an increase of 8.1 percent. Also, state-mandated police and fire pension costs rose by $374,932 to $2,678,719, a 16.27% increase.  

Single stream recycling increased by 53% in the last half of 2012, and there has been a 14% decrease in household garbage collected. An energy audit has resulted in savings for utility bills. And the township says it is experiencing savings through shared service agreements with other towns and the Board of Education. A joint plan with the BOE to provide turf fields in town will be discussed at Monday's government workshop meeting. 

The budget will be published on the township website and in the Two River Times public notices section on Monday, and a public hearing will be announced.