LACEY – Officials recently adopted the township’s municipal budget for the year which includes an increase in taxes.
For those who have homes assessed at the township average of $275,000 the tax increase will be $125 per year. Township Business Administrator/Clerk Veronica Laureigh discussed the details of the budget during a recent council session stating general appropriations for municipal purposes were $33,615,670. The reserve for uncollected taxes came to $1,365,862.
Total general appropriations (how much is being spent) came to $34,981,532. The amount to be raised by taxes is $17,550,329. The rest, $17,431,203, came from anticipated revenues, such as grants.
The governing body unanimously approved the budget.
Mayor Peter Curatolo said, “we are as stringent as we can be while still protecting and taking care of our employees and making appropriate purchases.”
Only one member of the public commented on the budget’s adoption. That resident said “I wanted to put a few things on the record that I have witnessed and seen that should inform your judgement going forward. I know you can only speak to the municipal portion of the budget but I wanted to talk about the school budget. There were five people there the night the vote was taken on the school budget.”
“When I look at the school budget as an aside, this year it is up 1.33 %. On the surface that seems to be wonderful. No one begrudges funding our schools,” the resident said. He noted that his senior community of Sea Breeze was “paying over $3.1 million to the school system.”
He added that “in 2009 there was a bond floated for a solar panel plan for $20 million but only about $11 or $12 million was spent on the solar panels and so if the rest of that money was put aside for a rainy day fund that would explain why these increases have been so small over the period of the last 12 years. The school district has been hit with a lot of tough things. Five years of state aid reductions.”
“I worry about when that little kitty of money is gone. What happens then,” the resident asked. My main concern in coming up here tonight on the municipal level is that people think the residents of Sea Breeze as the wealthiest in the community but you know what? There are many people in Sea Breeze who are living off of pensions and social security,” the resident said that all members of the community were facing recent rate increases from the town. “I am just asking that you comment on why that is happening.”
The mayor noted that this year the township was facing a number of union contract negotiations “and some of these costs we have no control over. I don’t think we see this type of raise in the next several years.”
“We paid off union contracts. We paid off notes and municipal bonds,” the mayor said. “I don’t want to minimize that. I know your impact for this community is yeoman’s work. We may disagree at times but all five us when we go in the back room we are looking out for the money because we pay taxes in this town to.”
The mayor noted that like the township, the Board of Education also advertises their budget hearing each year “but I can’t compel people to go. I want them to be engaged but if people don’t go that is a missed opportunity.”
