Asbury Park taxpayers will see a 28-cent increase in their municipal tax rate under the 2013 budget adopted by the City Council last week.
The municipal tax rate will increase from $3.20 for each $100 of assessed valuation to $3.48, or an approximate nine-percent increase. For the average home assessed at $84,000 there will be an increase of $234 in municipal taxes.
Acting Chief Financial Officer Richard Gartz said that additional revenues of $475,000 in state aid and $350,000 in Community Development Block Grant money are largely responsible for decreasing an original tax increase that was to be 39.7 cents.
Mayor Myra Campbell and Councilman John Moor voted against adopting the budget.
“I am concerned about the burden this tax increase imposes on people in our community who cannot afford it,” Campbell said.
Moor said he has many concerns about the budget, including the lack of funding for items like raises, buyouts, and security cameras.
“We got almost the same state aid we did last year and this is too high of a tax increase,” he said.
The total $41.2 million budget has a tax levy of almost $14.5 million. Property value in the city dropped from a total $429 million to $415 million, or down by $14 million, which resulted in 12 cents of the total tax increase.
The city also had to make a $650,000 emergency appropriation to cover a $1 million dollar shortfall in last year’s budget to cover employee health benefits.
In other business, the city is either reorganizing or creating committees to deal with four issues: new website and Internet technology; budget; parking; and public safety.
Anyone wanting to be a member of any committee should contact the city.
