Board Approves 2012 Final Budget with 3.8% Tax Increase

Taxpayers will part with 3.8 percent more money in 2012 than they paid in 2011. This equates to $28.50 more per $150,000 of assessed home value.

In a brief and scarcely attended meeting Dec. 27 unanimously approved an ordinance establishing a $15,670,713 final 2012 general budget, which includes an increase in millage by .19 mills.

The 2012 final general budget total is $2,013 more than the 2011 final budget total of $15,668,700. The 2012 final budget has a tax rate of 5.17 mills; the 2011 final budget had a total of 4.98 mills.

Taxes account for $10,562,063 of the total 2012 budget.

Fifth Ward Commissioner Jeffrey Rudolph, of the Administration and Finance Committee, read a 2012 final budget overview that cites a $11.5 million decrease in the township’s overall assessed value as the main cause of the tax increase.

Commissioners attribute 90 percent of the tax increase to a decrease to several commercial properties’ assessments by the County Board of Assessment Appeals. The overview (in the attached PDF file) states that the assessment loss decreased township revenue by $55,000.

“This is a fair budget that covers many of the items that went up, like personnel costs, insurance and utilities,” Rudolph said.

The overview states that the commissioners initially projected a $2.8 million deficit between projected revenues and expenditures and township spending has increased by a scant 1.3 percent since 2008.

It also states that the township’s $1.2 million Capital Vehicle Fund will be used to buy new vehicles for the as well as Public Works, Parks and Sanitation departments.

Taxpayers can get a discount of 2 percent from their tax total if they pay the total amount within two months of receiving the tax notice. An additional 10 percent penalty will be applied if taxes are not paid in total within four months of the notice date.

See the attached PDF file for a summary of appropriations.