LINWOOD — The city introduced its budget April 13, with Councilman Matthew Levinson saying there would be no need to increase the municipal tax rate to fund the $13,553,644 spending plan.
If adopted as introduced, the tax rate would remain 94.6 cents per $100. That translates to $946 for each $100,000 of assessed value, or $2,838 on a $300,000 home.
Levinson reported the local purpose tax rate would increase 1.7 cents, from 92.9 cents to 94.6 cents but the debt service tax rate would drop by the same amount to 2.2 cents.
Mainland Regional High School introduced its budget the previous evening, calling for a 1.7-cent increase in the regional school tax rate to 72 cents, while Linwood School District’s preliminary budget called for an increase of 2.7 cents to $1.417.
However, Atlantic County’s $236.8 million budget calls for a 1.5-cent decrease, bringing the total expected tax increase for a homeowner in Linwood to 2.9 cents, or $87 on a $300,000 home.
Last year, the city raised $8,6450,729 in local purpose tax plus $314,735 in municipal library tax to fund the $13,073,383 budget.
Group insurance costs were $1,163,668 and would increase $130,426 this year to $1,294,094, according to numbers Levinson provided.
Police department salaries and wages will drop from $2,031,884 to $1,935,814 as a result of retirees being replaced by lower-paid officers but the operating budget has increase by $31,450; fire salaries and wages will rise from $377,292 to $387,734, while the operating budget is up $5,000 to $85,500; City Clerk Office salaries and wages are up a little more than $3,000 to $152,662, while operating expenses are up $15,100 to $82,450 in other expenses.
Public works salaries and wages are up more than $50,000 to $506,607 — City Council welcomed three new employees to the department during the meeting — while the operating budget will rise slightly to $178,000.
Municipal court costs were $168,794 in 2021 and expected to be $110,000 as the Atlantic County Central Municipal Court takes over operations.
The city budgeted $371,000 for buildings and grounds in 2021 and will increase that line item to $405,500 for 2022. Statutory expenditures, including pension payments, are set to increase by $54,197 to $1,111,593.
The city had 14 successful tax appeals in 2021. Levinson said that resulted in a loss of $3,214,300 in value and $47,069 in lost taxes while noting that in 2019 there were 124 successful tax appeals.
“Everyone here is very happy to have a zero cent increase this year,” Levinson said during the meeting. “I think it shows all the hard work of the people at this table and the city of Linwood.”
A presentation on the budget is scheduled for May 11. The general meeting immediately follows the caucus session, which begins at 6 p.m.
– By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
