Howell's 2008 budget checks in at $43.7M
BY TOYNETT HALL Staff Writer

HOWELL- A$43.7 million municipal budget to fund Howell's operation in 2008 has been introduced by the Township Council.

The budget was introduced on June 10. A public hearing on the budget has been scheduled for the council's July 10 meeting, to be followed by a vote to adopt the spending plan.

The municipal budget funds the operation of Howell's government, the Howell Police Department, the Department of Public Works, parks and recreation, planning and zoning functions, and professionals such as attorneys, engineers and planners, among other items.

According to information provided by the township, the 2008 budget calls for about $1 million less in spending than the 2007 budget. The local property tax levy to support the budget will be $18.3 million, an increase of about $78,000 from the 2007 tax levy.

The remainder of the budget will be support by revenues from other sources.

Three line items in the budget show significant increases from last year's spending plan. Howell will pay $1.8 million in police pension payments in 2008, an increase of $568,693 from the $1.3 million paid in 2007.

Howell will pay $483,000 in public employees retirement pension payments in 2008, an increase of $200,417 from the $283,196 paid in 2007.

Payments for gas, telephone, water, electric, street lighting and heat are up $255,320, from $1.7 million in 2007 to about $1.95 million in 2008, according to Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey Filiatreault.

Council members called the $43.7 million budget a responsible spending plan.

The municipal tax rate will remain at 26.6 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. That means the owner of a home that is assessed at the township average of $355,000 will continue to pay about $944 in municipal taxes. The owner of a home assessed at $500,000 will continue to pay about $1,330 in municipal taxes.

Municipal taxes are one part of the overall property tax bill, which also includes Howell K-8 School District taxes, Freehold Regional High School District taxes, Monmouth County taxes and several other assessments.An increase in any of the tax rates that make up a property tax bill will cause the overall property tax to rise.

Councilwoman Angela Dalton said, "We could have raised $1 million to be added to the tax levy, but we opted to tighten our belts and do the will of the people."

She said even though the council opted to "stop the bleeding of taxes, your taxes are still going to go up."

In light of the current economic climate, Dalton said, "This is a responsible budget."

Mayor Joseph DiBella said he was "pleased to pass this budget. This is my sixth budget. We must be conscious of the economic crisis we are in. People are losing their home, can't pay their mortgage … they are hurting at every turn.

"We have to do what's responsible. We can't afford another tax increase.We have to do what is in the best interest of the majority of the people. We have come up with a responsible spending plan. We are conscious of the time we are living in and demonstrating to our community that we can hold the line," DiBella said.

Councilman Robert Walsh said, "We made the best overall decision for the people of Howell."

Prior to the introduction of the budget on June 10, 14 municipal positions were eliminated, six of which were vacant and eight of which were layoffs. Those 14 positions allowed the council to reduce spending by $901,000, according to Filiatreault.

In other positions, the township did not replace people who retired from various jobs and Filiatreault said those positions will be lost to attrition. He said officials used whatever methods were available to cut another projected $100,000 in spending from a number of departments.

Howell's 2007 municipal budget totaled $44.8 million and the 2006 municipal budget totaled $40.5 million.