Christie, Sweeney Target Local User Fees

Fees are the latest target of Gov. Chris Christie and Sen. Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester, Cumberland, Salem).

A Senate committee approved a bill Monday that would count user fees for trash collection and firefighting toward the state-imposed 2 percent cap on property tax increases.

The bill specifically targets "user fees" for services that are traditionally by collecting taxes, like collecting garbage, cleaning streets and providing emergency services. It would apply to only new fees enacted in the year before the bill takes effect.

Paramus included a little more than $4.7 million in fee collections in its 2011 budget, though it's unclear which would fall under the bill's definition of "user fees." The Borough was a little more than $5 million under the cap.

The Borough anticipated fee revenue from the following line items:

• Fees and permits: $130,000
• Uniform construction code fees: $1,300,000
• Sewer use charges: $1,600,000
• Ambulance fees: $1,000,000
• Business licensing fees: $400,000
• Cable TV franchise fees: $262,000

Councilman Joseph Lagana said the fees Paramus collects are common for most municipalities in New Jersey.

Many towns have increased or adopted new fees as a way of raising revenue as a way around the cap on tax increases.

Fair Lawn has quadrupled a surcharge on water bills, Englewood charges contractors for after-hours inspections and Passaic increased a fee for handicapped parking permits, NorthJersey.com reports. Towns like Lawrence are considering charging fees for garbage collection.

The 2 percent cap was instituted in 2010. The Borough has not introduced or increased fees at a faster rate since then.

In 2010, the Borough raised fees for vending machine licenses from $40 to $50 and the fee for a pneumococcal vaccine from $10 to $20. The Borough introduced a schedule of fees to use its recreation fields.

They range from as low as $50 to hold a soccer game at , or park, to as high as $1,000 to hold an all-day soccer or football tournament. 

Over the past five years, the Borough has also raised fees for dog licenses (from $8 to $12 for neutered dogs), join the swimming pool (from $160 to $250 for a family of two) and obtain a street excavation permit (from $25 to $300). The fees for dog licensing and street excavation hadn't increased since the late 1980s.

"It should be expected to pay a fee to use the town pool or make applications for building permits, as the borough expends money to operate its utilities and monitor building projects throughout town," Lagana said. "Many of our fees deal with commercial businesses and construction. Fees are increased to keep up with the obligations of the borough, cover operating costs and ensure its ordinances are being followed."

Regarding the user fees being considered by other towns, Lagana said Paramus could manage its budget without "using roundabout methods."

In a statement released after the bill banning user fees cleared a Senate committee, Sweeney blasted the charges as another form of taxation.

"Property taxes are high enough without local officials trying to come up with clever and new ways to raise them even more," Sweeney said. "The cap was put in place because New Jerseyans have had it with ever increasing property taxes. It shouldn’t be seen as simply something to get around.”

Municipal officials around the state decried the passage of the bill. 

Point Pleasant Beach Mayor Vincent Barella told columnist Paul Mulshine of the Star-Ledger that it would be easy to cut down on fees if state didn't take sales and income tax revenue from local business while leaving local taxpayers to pay for police. Meanwhile, Christie's proposed budget would collect more than $7 billion in fees, Mulshine reported.

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