Average Ridgewood homeowner's taxes could increase $47 this year

The average Ridgewood homeowner’s municipal taxes are slated to increase about $47 this year.

The Village Council decided to move ahead with an estimated $31.3 million tax levy at a special budget meeting Monday night, Village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld confirmed. The budget was one of three options that officials were considering moving ahead with for 2015.

The budget, including the tax levy, has not been approved yet. The budget will be officially be introduced at the April 22 Council meeting. The public hearing and adoption is planned for May 27.

Mayor Paul Aronsohn could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

The $31.3 million tax levy is about $371,000 than last year’s $30.9 million, a 1.2 percent increase. The average homeowner will pay about $47 more in municipal taxes this year and about $56 when the library’s budget is factored into the calculations.

The other two budget variants officials were considering were a “premium/reduced risk” one and a “reduced investment/greater risk” one.

The “premium” option would have raised the average tax bill by $63 with its $31.4 million tax levy. It would have given the library with $25,000 of additional funds and added $200,000 in terminal leave funds.

The “reduced” option would have raised the average tax bill by $32, $41 with the library factored in. The $31.2 million proposed tax levy would only have been about $25,700 more than last year’s, a less than 1 percent increase. This budget would have cut nearly $101,000 from the “recommended” budget, including $17,000 from the library, $15,000 from the village’s disaster recovery plan, and $25,000 in information technology support.