Budget Presentation 2020

Blairstown Township Committee

General Township Information• Web Site: www.blairstowntownship.org

• Population Estimate 5819

• Area 30.9 square miles

• Employment at Town Hall

Full Time: 8 Police, 6 Public Works, 2 General Staff

• Approx. 58 miles of Township Owned Roads

• 140+ Roads in our Town

(26 private roads reimbursed for plowing)

Blairstown Township Budget Description 2020 Budget 2019 Budget 2018 Audited 2017 AuditedGeneral Revenue:

Reserve for Municipal Tax $426,336.00 $356,280.00 $576,310.26 $569,243.00

Surplus Anticipated 615,000.00 774,561.00 795,508.00 729,990.00

Local Revenue 81,000.00 73,000.00 81,755.45 8,241.000

State Aid 2,930,536.00 2,930,536.00 2,930,536.00 2,930,536.00Garden State Trust 22,913.00 14,854.00 14,854.00 41,658.00

Receipt Delinquent Tax 275,000.00 220,000.00 238,843.59 220,592.00

Anticipated From General Capital 25,000.00 50,000.00

VAAP'S 2019 / Grants 2018 49,111.74 40,000.00 30,781.58

Sale of Municipal Assets & Reserve Debt 70,231.00 2,750.00 2,800.00

NJDOT note note 240,000.00 185,000.00

Non Budget Revenue 98,106.98 82,706.00

Total General Revenue $ 4,495,127.74 $ 4,461,981.00 $ 5,009,495.86 $ 4,844,966.00

Blairstown Township Budget Description Proposed 2020 2019 Budget 2018 Audited 2017 Audited

AppropriationsGeneral Government $994,576.00 $ 1,077,501.00 $ 1,209,289.98 $ 1,143,284.00 Public Safety 1,008,307.87 903,460.00 816,604.57 743,793.00

Public Works 563,826.00 589,468.00 438,853.60 503,197.00Health & Human Services 32,050.00 34,500.00 37,372.83 28,253.00Utility Expense 125,500.00 125,500.00 123,289.99 112,852.00Municipal Court 15,000.00 500.00Total Operating 2,739,259.87 2,730,929.00 2,625,410.97 2,531,379.00Statutory Expenditures 384,600.00 330,746.00 301,743.38 323,001.00Public & Private Programs 69,111.74 276,781.58 211,804.00Capital Improvements 155,000.00 275,000.00 135,000.00 130,000.00Municipal Debt Service 152,900.00 157,283.00 161,682.50 166,083.00Deferred Charges to Future Debt 12,500.00 81,255.00 81,255.00 81,255.00Reserve for Uncollected Taxes 645,060.13 673,000.00 673,000.00 673,000.00Deferred Charge - Police 88,928.00Reserve for Road Paving 247,768.00 213,768.00

Total General Appropriations $4,495,127.74 $ 4,461,981.00 $ 4,254,873.43 $ 4,116,522.00

31676093040905

2930536 2930536 2930536 2930536 2930536 2930536 2930536 2930536 2930536 2930536 2930536

2363070

1707801

1108612999729 979495 1033727 1022915

931897 944043859574 808000

718,000

545,665

0

500000

1000000

1500000

2000000

2500000

3000000

3500000

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Energy Tax Receipts (in millions) Fund Balance

In M

illio

ns

Projected balance 2020

2,930,536 2,930,536 2,930,536 2,930,536 2,930,536 2,930,536 2,930,536

3,491,995

3,939,2714,044,066

4,176,6844,254,873

4,461,981 4,495,128

1,022,915 931,897 944,043 859,574 808,591 718,000545,665

0

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

2,500,000

3,000,000

3,500,000

4,000,000

4,500,000

5,000,000

2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Comparative Financial Information 2014 - 2018

Energy Receipts General Appropriations Fund Balance

General Bond Obligation – Current FundYear Bond Obligation Interest Total

2020 $110,000.00 $42,882.50 $152,882.50

2021 115,000.00 38,482.50 153,482.50

2022 115,000.00 33,738.76 148,738.76

2023 115,000.00 28,995.00 143,995.00

2024 115,000.00 24,251.26 139,251.26

2025 115,000.00 19,507.50 134,507.50

2026 115,000.00 14,620.00 129,620.00

2027 115,000.00 9,732.50 124,732.50

2028 114,000.00 4,845.00 118,845.00

Total $ 1,029,000.00 $ 217,055.02 $ 1,246,055.02

Deferred Charges to Future Taxation - UnfundedDescription Year Incurred Balance 2020

Removal UST – Former Recreation Center 2009 $ 4,323.00

Improvement to Various Roads 2015 287,014.44

Single Axel Dump Truck 2016 152,764.00

Various Improvements 2017 208,799.89

Improvements to Roads 2018 85,800.00

Installation of Generator 2018 38,000.00

Vehicles 2019 124,500.00

Various Roads 2019 190,000.00

Walnut Valley Soil Remediation 2019 380,000.00

Air Packs - Firehouse 2019 121,583.60

DPW Equipment - Single Axel 2020 161,500.00

Police SUV 2020 52,250.00

Total Deferred Charges $ 1,806,534.93

Project Title Project #Estimated Total Cost

Amt Reserved Prior YR

2020 Budget Appropriation

Capital Imp. Fund

Grants & Other Funds

Debt Authorized

Purchase of DPW Truck 2020-1 36,000.00 36,000.00 Purchase of DPW Equipment 2020-2 29,000.00 29,000.00 Purchase of Single Axis Truck 2020-3 170,000.00 8,500.00 161,500.00

Purchase of Police SUV 2020-4 55,000.00 2,750.00 52,250.00

Purchase of Roadside Mower 2020-5 130,000.00 130,000.00 Improvements to Various Roads 2020-6 247,768.00 247,768.00

Improvements to Heller Hill 2020-7 140,000.00 140,000.00

Reserve for First Aid 2020-8 50,000.00 50,000.00

Reserve for Fire Equipment 2020-9 10,000.00 10,000.00 Reserve for Road Improvements 2020-10 100,000.00 100,000.00

Total 967,768.00 36,000.00 407,768.00 40,250.00 270,000.00 213,750.00

Open Space Debt Obligation2.5¢ Tax Collected yearly for Open Space, Recreation & Historic Preservation

Year Principal Interest NJ Economic Dev.

Total

2020 35,000.00 7,133.76 27,498.00 69,631.76

2021 45,000.00 5,733.76 50,733.76

2022 45,000.00 3,877.50 48,877.50

2023 49,000.00 2,021.26 51,021.26

Total $174,000.00 $18,766.28 $27,498.00 $220,264.28

Blairstown Township – over the past 14 years, has financially supported the preservation of approx. 1,200 acres: 800 acres Farmland and 400 acres Open Space. Our future active recreational needs are satisfied by the purchase and preservation of two areas totaling 113 acres. In 2002 & 2005 the Township borrowed a total of $524,000 to purchase open space through bonding. In preservation we have utilized funding from Green Acres (PIG Grant- Planning Incentive), Warren County Municipal & Charitable Trust Fund and State Agriculture Development Committee (PIG), and Warren County Agriculture Development Committee for farmland preservation. We also have a close partnership with Blairstown-based Ridge & Valley Conservancy.

2019 Blairstown Township Tax Bill Home Assessment ValuesDescription % of tax Rate per $100 $250,000 $300,000 $350,000 $400,000 $450,000 $500,000

County Tax 26.99% 0.652 $ 1,630.00 $ 1,956.00 $ 2,282.00 $ 2,608.00 $ 2,934.00 $ 3,260.00 Library Tax 2.15% 0.052 $ 130.00 $ 156.00 $ 182.00 $ 208.00 $ 234.00 $ 260.00 County Open Space 1.08% 0.026 $ 65.00 $ 78.00 $ 91.00 $ 104.00 $ 117.00 $ 130.00 Regional School 34.64% 0.837 $ 2,092.50 $ 2,511.00 $ 2,929.50 $ 3,348.00 $ 3,766.50 $ 4,185.00 District School 32.08% 0.775 $ 1,937.50 $ 2,325.00 $ 2,712.50 $ 3,100.00 $ 3,487.50 $ 3,875.00 Municipal Tax 2.03% 0.049 $ 122.50 $ 147.00 $ 171.50 $ 196.00 $ 220.50 $ 245.00 Municipal Open Space 1.03% 0.025 $ 62.50 $ 75.00 $ 87.50 $ 100.00 $ 112.50 $ 125.00

Tax Rate 2019 Current Tax 2.416 $ 6,040.00 $ 7,248.00 $ 8,456.00 $ 9,664.00 $ 10,872.00 $ 12,080.00

Municipal Tax 2020Annual Increase 0.01 $25.00 $30.00 $35.00 $40.00 $45.00 $50.00 Monthly Increase $2.09 $2.50 $2.92 $3.34 $3.75 $4.17

Gen. Approp & Fund Balance

3 ¢ = $213,500

Road Improvement3 ¢= $213,5006 ¢ = $427,000 2020 Total 2019 Net Valuation Taxable

1 ¢ = $71,167

The primary responsibility of this township committee is maintaining the township’s assets and providing needed services while trying to balance a budget with limited resources, hold a healthy surplus and be accountable for the municipal tax to our taxpayers. We have been improving our town by paving and maintaining roads, updating needed equipment, meeting our mandates with high regard to keeping the tax rate as low as possible.

NOT AN EASY TASK – we were at odds in instituting a municipal tax, yet fully understanding how costs have risen and our responsibility to safety and welfare. We have the lowest municipal tax in Warren County. According to the 2019 figures from the County Tax Department, in comparing the municipal tax rate in any given Warren County Town, we are at minimum 50¢ to a $1.594 lower.

Our surplus has diminished to a critical level, we proposed a municipal tax of 6¢, up 1¢ from last year, to try to maintain our funds and improve roads. Costs and issues constantly arise and force unexpected expenditures. Our State Aid has remained stagnant for the past 11 years while costs escalate.

Up until 2019, we had an incredible luxury for over 50+ years – not having a municipal tax and up to Year 2001, contributed millions to the reduction of the regional and local school tax to keep taxes low for our taxpayers. Blairstown is at a critical point with the projection of our surplus dipping in half since year 2010. We cannot continue on this tract. We have minimal staff – 8 Police Officers for 6,000 people with a larger population in town when schools and businesses are operating, our roads are a major concern since they had been neglected for a decade, our DPW has 6 workers, one is a working Director, one a mechanic for all of our vehicles including the Fire Department Vehicles, one is cleaning and maintaining our buildings, parks, recreation areas, another splits time daily maintaining our Water Dept, leaving two totally dedicated to roads and storm drains. Please keep in mind we have 58 miles of township owned roads to look after, so if we do not get to your road it is not for lack of trying.

All of our Certified/Tenure Positions with the exception of the Clerk are part time. The only two Full Time Employees with the exception of our Police Officers and DPW is the Clerk and Police Records Keeper. We split three-part times up in the front Office to answer the phone, attend to the public and perform payroll, accounts payable, dog licensing, and Registrar duties.

Our fulltime employees all contribute to health insurance, we do not provide coverage to part time employees. We are fortunate to belong to an insurance consortium that for many years has had low claims and we have received a portion of our cost returned to us. The Municipal Court Consortium we have been a part of is being dissolved after 2020. Our concern in seeking a new venue is added expense. The percentage we receive for tickets and fines from the court is minimal – the state takes a major portion leaving us with little to apply to our court costs.

This year we must review our Towns Master Plan, this adds extra expense for updates, changes, engineering costs, planner and attorney fees.

We have an incredible group of volunteers with some paid a small stipend to do a tremendous amount of work when called upon. Our Office of Emergency Management, Community Emergency Response Team, Fire Department, Ambulance Corp, help keep our residents safe when a crisis arises.

Open Space Committee, Historic Preservation Committee consistently spending a tremendous amount of time with projects to helpeducate and preserve our towns rural character. Many outside groups deserve a shout out for their diligence and contribution toimprove our town and way of life – Rotary, Blair Women’s Club, American Legion, Masons, Lions Club, the many Denominations of Churches, and Warren County for all the services provided to our citizens from Food to Welfare.

Be assured, we are here to serve our residents and taxpayers by providing the Best Community possible with limited resources and responsible spending.