Tuesday: Hazlet to Hold Public Hearing on $20.2 Million Municipal Budget

The Hazlet Township Committee will hold a public hearing on the proposed fiscal year 2013 budget at their April 16 meeting before voting on its adoption.

The $20,213,458.86 budget holds the tax levy at $13,650,000 for the second year in a row. Under the two percent cap, the township could have increased the amount to be raised by taxes to $14,767,024.

Although the tax levy remained the same, the revaluation of the township decreased the overall value of the property within the town, Chief Financial Officer Tom O'Hara explained. The assessed value of an average home in Hazlet dropped from $301,490 to $259,977.

The decrease in assessed property value resulted in an increase in the tax rate. In 2012, the tax rate was 0.578 per $100 of a home's assessed value. Tax payers will see the rate increase to 0.666 per $100 of a home's assessed value. Even so, the owner of a home priced at the median value - $259,977 - would see a decrease of just over $11 to their annual municipal taxes, O'Hara explained. 

The township committee will hold a public hearing on the budget at their April 16 meeting, which begins at 8 p.m. at the municipal building. The public is welcome to ask questions and make comments on the budget before the committee votes on it.