Police Contract Extension With Wrightstown OK'd By Newtown Township

NEWTOWN TOWNSHIP, PA — Newtown Township has approved a contract extension to provide police services to neighboring Wrightstown Township for the next 10 years.

The board of supervisors voted 4 to 1 to approve the contract in which Wrightstown will pay Newtown Township $888,000 in 2023 with a five percent a year escalator clause each year over the course of the contract.

By the third year, Wrightstown will be paying Newtown more than a million dollars a year for police services. And by the 10th year it will be somewhere between $1.4 and $1.5 million.

The total contract is worth a little over $10 million, which will be paid to Newtown by Wrightstown Township taxpayers.

“But this goes beyond the numbers,” said Newtown Township Chairman Dennis Fisher. “We have a good working relationship with Wrightstown in our police department and you can’t put a value in that.”

Supervisor John Mack voted against the contract arguing that it under funds the Newtown Township Police Department.

“The 2023 fee of $888,000 is not sufficient to cover the cost involved,” said Mack. “This is not money that is put away in a bank to earn interest. Services need to be provided and those services cost money. Wrightstown residents are getting those services at much less cost per capita than
Newtown residents. That’s just not fair to our taxpayers.”

The contract, he said, also does not take into account inflation rates, which are nearly eight percent. Nor does it take into the extra costs that are needed to cover Wrightstown, he said

“In addition our police department needs a new, more modern police department to replace the run down, inefficient cottage that we use. Who will pay for this new building that is desperately needed? It will be Newtown Township taxpayers, and not Wrightstown.”

Supervisor Phil Calabro asked Mack where he would propose making up the 2 1/2 mills in revenue that would be lost each year if the Wrightstown Township contract isn’t approved.

“Considering the five percent increase per year, which I haven’t seen a CD that’s been above one percent over the last 15 years, a five percent rate of return isn’t as bad as Mr. Mack says it is. By the time we get to the end of this we would have accumulated $1.45 million from the Wrightstown contract. Every year, that contract will go up five percent. If we didn’t get it we would have to increase taxes to compensate for that lost revenue of which we are always trying to find.

“And believe me, if it’s not us we’re going to make our neighboring townships very happy. Northampton, or maybe Buckingham, will pick up this contract. And they will gladly take the
$888,000 the first year going up to $1.45 million in the 10th,” said Calabro. “Unless you have a way to compensate for that income, then let’s hear it. Tell us how we’re going to get that $888,000 or do you want to tax the people an additional two and a half mills? Maybe you want a John Mack tax in lieu of a Wrightstown Township contract.”

Mack said he believes the contract under funds the police and is not paying enough for the services provided. “If we didn’t have Wrightstown to cover maybe we can work with Newtown Borough and take over their police department.”

Mack also took issue with the 10 year length of the contract. “I never heard of such a thing,” he said. “We can’t get out of it. We’re stuck with it. And we’ll see what happens when we need the new police building.”

Calabro said maybe the township should look into an agreement with Newtown Borough, “but do you think Newtown Borough will give us $888,000 a year? And maybe we should consider Upper Makefield. But if we can’t prove we can even handle Wrightstown Township why would these other municipalities even want to think of us patrolling their communities?”