Public Hearing On Gloucester Township Budget Set For Monday

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — There will be a public hearing and final vote on Gloucester Township’s proposed $69,074,204.92 budget during Monday night’s council meeting, 7:30 p.m. at the municipal building, 1261 Chews Landing Road.

There would be no increases in taxes, as the tax rate would remain unchanged at $53,333,030.92 to be collected through taxation, according to a copy of the proposed budget provided to Patch. Read more here: No Tax Increase In Gloucester Township’s Proposed Budget

For the second consecutive year, a group of citizens put together their own budget. The budget provided by a group of five or six residents calls for a 9.25 percent decrease in taxes, which is about the same percentage as the increase the township passed last year, amid the coronavirus pandemic. Read more here: Amended Tax Hike Approved In Gloucester Township

“With our budget, you’d basically get your 2020 tax increase back in the way of a 2021 reduction, but that’s not what the GT administration has in mind, the group writes on the Restore GT website, which includes a posted copy of the citizens budget.

Pete Heinbaugh helped put the citizens budget together, and said it comes in response to be asked by council members, "what would you cut?" during public meetings over the years. Heinbaugh described the group as financial professionals, who spent 75 hours putting together last year's citizens budget.

They didn't make any changes to salaries and wages, or police department expenses, and they requested information they weren't aware of from the township under the Open Public Records Act (OPRA).

They emailed a copy to township officials, stating "Of course, the GT Administration may very well have legitimate reasons and explanations for the figures in the Introduced Budget. Also, it is possible that the Administration will disagree with the figures that have been presented here. Sincere conversations are welcomed and encouraged to improve mutual understanding."

Heinbaugh and Sam Sweet said the township never responded. Mayor David Mayer didn't respond to a request for comment from Patch for this story.

There’s been a tax increase in even-numbered years each year since 2014, and critics of the township administration have pointed out that these increases only come in years when there are no municipal elections. In years in which taxes have not been increased, they’ve remained flat.

When this year’s budget was introduced, Heinbaugh asked if a sub-committee would be formed this year, the same way one was formed last year.

Councilman Dan Hutchison said he would be going through the budget with two other members of council, and asking any questions that need to be answered, but there would not be a formal sub-committee.

On Monday night, proposals concerning plug-in electric vehicle charging stations and a proposal to amend land development regarding solar energy will also be introduced. They were scheduled to be introduced on April 12, but both proposals were tabled that night.

To view the full agenda, visit the township's website.