Committee to Begin Municipal Budget Process March 7

The township Committee will begin the 2013-14 budget process with its first meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 7.

"Lacey Township is in the very early stages of budget development and have been working with the department heads reviewing requests," Township Administrator and Municipal Clerk Veronica Laureigh previously said.

This first meeting will be “brief,” she said. Committee members will receive budget booklets and an overview of the proposed budget will be provided based on requests from township departments.

The Committee will then schedule any further budget meetings.

It appears as though Lacey’s Energy Tax Receipts (ETR) will remain stable, Laureigh said. The township has expressed concern the Energy Tax Receipt could get cut in the past. The Energy Tax Receipt accounts for 42.6 percent of Lacey's budget. Although the energy tax has been cut by the state approximately $870,647 since 2007, the township has been told to anticipate the equivalent of 2012 levels, which is .

An increase in cost for medial insurance, the expenses incurred due to Hurricane Sandy and tax appeals will have the greatest impact on this year’s budget process, Mayor David Most said.

“I’m sure we’ll get through them,” he said. “The township, we run an efficient municipality here, and I think our departments run very well.”

The township is again facing a 2 percent state-mandated cap and residents are currently bracing for a potential 4.9 percent increase in the school district's tax levy.

In 2012, the township approved a budget with a tax increase of $63 to the average Lacey homeowner.

A second budget meeting is set for Thursday, March 21 at 7 p.m.