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Council Approves $9 Million Temporary Operating Budget
By Keith Hagarty
Getting the town's finances in order was one of the first items on the agenda in the new calendar year for the township council after they unanimously adopted the 2007 temporary operating budget on Tuesday calling for the appropriation of $9 million.
The temporary operating budget is utilized as a way for the town to pay any contracts or commitments that are scheduled to be made prior to the formal adoption of the overall 2007 municipal operating budget. By statute it must be adopted by the governing body within the first 30 days of the fiscal year.
In addition, the temporary operating budget cannot exceed 26.25 percent of the total expenditures of the municipal operating budget from the prior year.
"This (temporary) budget is estimated for the first three months of the year for the town," said Township Business Administrator William Santos.
With increased costs to the municipal employee pension system, Santos said the temporary budget was necessary to meet the April 1 pension payment. The exact numbers of the temporary budget can still be amended over the coming weeks should unforeseen extra expenses, such as the need for emergency snow removal, rise in the winter months.
The 2007 municipal operating budget could be introduced to the council by the mayor and administration as early as mid- February.
"We're reviewing the budget carefully at this point in time," said Santos, who cautioned that the town would still have to wait for the state to get their aid numbers in line before the numbers can be finalized.
The mayor and council have expressed a desire to keep the 2007 taxes in line after approving last year's municipal budget with a near 20-cent municipal tax rate hike, the blame for which they laid at the feet of the prior administration.
Stan Goldman, of Spyglass Drive, asked Mayor Mark Seda whether a series of public workshops would be held on the municipal budget once it is introduced. Seda promised there would be workshops similar to the three extended ones held last year regarding the abbreviated 2006 municipal budget.
"That's good to hear," said Goldman. "It was a very good learning experience."
The workshops are expected to be scheduled shortly following the introduction of the 2007 municipal budget in the coming months.
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