28 towns get property tax relief from $17.9M in grants
Thursday, November 23, 2006
BY ROBERT SCHWANEBERG
Star-Ledger Staff

The state awarded grants totaling $17.9 million yesterday to 28 towns facing fiscal emergencies to help them stave off property tax increases.

The "extraordinary aid" grants can only be used for property tax relief and are intended to assist municipalities facing "a severe fiscal crisis," according to the state Department of Community Affairs, which administers the program. To obtain the grants, towns must file an application and show they are taking "significant measures" to operate more efficiently.

"This funding will help lessen the property tax burden for New Jersey residents and allow local governments to continue to improve the quality of life for their residents," Community Affairs Commissioner Susan Bass Levin said.

The largest grants, for $1.5 million each, went to Hillside, Bayonne, Jersey City and Passaic. The smallest grants of $150,000 each went to Piscataway, Hoboken, South Plainfield and Union Beach.

Other grant recipients included Dunellen, $300,000; Edison, $700,000; Keansburg, $400,000; Lake Como, $250,000; Plainfield, $900,000; Roselle, $600,000; South Amboy, $850,000, and Woodbridge, $700,000.

Towns in just three counties -- Hudson, Middlesex and Union -- got grants totaling $12 million, or two-thirds of the total. No municipalities in Essex, Hunterdon, Mercer, Ocean, Somerset, Sussex or Warren counties received aid.

In two of the four towns that got maximum grants, elected officials also serve as lawmakers. The mayor of Bayonne is Sen. Joseph Doria (D-Hudson), while Assemblyman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic) serves on the Passaic City Council.

Assemblyman Joseph Vas (D-Middlesex) is mayor of Perth Amboy, which got $700,000. In Lawnside, which got $550,000, Mayor Mark Bryant is the brother of Sen. Wayne Bryant (D-Camden), who lives in Lawnside.

Sean Darcy, a spokesman for the Department of Community Affairs, said lawmakers did not determine which towns got grants.

"This is based on individual town needs," Darcy said. "This is not legislative."

Robert Schwaneberg covers state government. He may be reached at rschwaneberg@starledger.com or 609-989-0324.