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BY BOB HOLT
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
Many people have been affected by the massive budget cuts in New Jersey this year. But guess what? The average New Jersey homeowner will now be hit with a 3.3 percent property tax increase this year.
The changes in the average property tax bills will range from a $6,313 increase in the village of Loch Arbour to a $1,329 reduction in Penns Grove, Salem County. Of the 415 reporting towns, the average property tax bill will be $7,694 this year.
Out of the 415 towns (out of 566 in the state) studied, the tax bill increased in 379, decreased in 35 and stayed the same in one. The remaining 151 towns are still making final their budgets or were awaiting county tax board certification.
The Asbury Park Press reports that the average will hit 23.5 percent after the loss of the homestead rebate is considered.
This year's NJ SAVER homestead rebate was eliminated under Gov. Chris Christie's budget plan. Homeowners who qualified for the rebate last year saw an average check of $1,037 to offset a statewide average tax bill of $7,291.Christie has said he plans to revamp the rebate program in May so that it will cost the government less money to run. Plans are to limit rebates to homeowners making up to $75,000 year, unless the owner is over 65 or disabled. Then the maximum income limit is $150,000.
Faced with a looming $10 billion deficit in the spring, Christie cut hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to schools and municipalities to balance the state's budget. The cuts forced many schools and towns to lay off workers and curtail services, but that hasn't offset rising costs in salaries, pensions, health care and other budget factors.
Christie has said tax and government reforms being debated by the Legislature will help keep tax increases to 2 percent in the coming years. A 2 percent cap on future property tax increases was passed in July, but NJ.com reported the Legislature is also considering a 33-bill "tool kit" that would give more power to schools and towns to curtail public salary, pension increases and other costs.
Not everyone believes in the tool kit. Senate budget committee chairman Paul Sarlo says New Jersey property tax bills, already the highest in the U.S., may rise an average of $600 to make up for Governor Chris Christie's proposed cuts in school and municipal aid. He told Businessweek.com that towns and schools may boost taxes as much as 8.2 percent as they seek to replace lost funding.
Residents of Loch Arbour, a seaside village next to Asbury Park that is just two blocks wide with 280 residents, have seen their property taxes rise faster than anywhere else in the state. The average property tax today: $19,908 in a town where the median household income is $83,300.
The reason was a new school formula that required the village to pay just under $80,000 per pupil to send 24 children to the nearby Ocean Township public schools. Betty McBain, the president of the village's board of trustees said that was about twice as much as it costs to go to Princeton for one year.
According to the Daily Record, Seaside Park was one of the few Ocean County towns that actually saw a drop in property taxes, which declined 2.5 percent, if the state rebate is not included. The borough lost about $35,000 in state aid this year.
Administrator Bob Martucci said the borough closed its elementary school and now sends pupils to the Toms River Regional School district, which saved taxpayers $750,000. He said the borough has entered into several shared services agreements with nearby municipalities.
Most residents saw a $300 to $400 reduction in their tax bills this year, he said.
