Tag: State

The state Legislature maybe revising its cap law, though the chances remain slim. The cap law, which the governor pushed hard as a way to control spending, always seemed a foolish contrivance that was likely to do little more than force towns to make bad budgetary choices.

So, enter Jamesburg. The borough, facing difficult fiscal realities made more difficult by the cap, was preparing to close its library, the council claiming that it had no choice.

The plan was defeatist, but given the fiscal mess that is New Jersey, you could see how Jamesburg and dozens of other small or urban towns might view something like this as a quick fix.

In any case, relief may — or may not (the bill had not bee voted upon as of 6 p.m.) — be on the way.

This story — reported and written by Bill Greenwood — will be running in The Cranbury Press tomorrow:

Legislation that would exempt public library spending from a 4 percent tax levy cap could alter the Borough Council’s plans for a fall referendum on the Jamesburg library.

The bill, which has the support of the New Jersey League of Municipalities and the New Jersey Library Association, had not been scheduled for a vote as of Thursday afternoon. It was unclear whether it or a substitute measure might be voted upon before the Legislature goes into recess this week, according to members of the Assembly.

The legislation, sponsored by state Assembly Majority Leader Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Mercer), would remove state-mandated spending for municipal public libraries from a new cap on tax levies that will take effect next month for towns with fiscal year budgets and in January for towns like Jamesburg that operate on calendar-year budgets.

The new cap, signed into law by Gov. Jon Corzine earlier this year, will limit increases in tax levies, or the total amount raised from taxes, to 4 percent. It included few exemptions and moved library spending under the cap for the first time in 25 years.

The Borough Council says the cap law and a longstanding state law that requires municipalities to provide a minimum amount of funding for municipal libraries are squeezing the borough’s budget.

It says it needs more flexibility in crafting its budget and is proposing two questions for the November ballot. One would ask borough residents to approve a change in the library’s status from a municipal library to an association library, which would allow the council to reduce funding. A second, non-binding question would ask if the library should be closed. The council would need to approve ordinances by mid-August to place the questions on the ballot.

Borough Council member Brian Grimes said Thursday that council members support the cap exemption. He said approval of the legislation would make the referendums unnecessary.

“We need to have this done,” he said. “Not just for our library, but for every other community in the state thats in the same position.”

Pat Tumulty, executive director of the New Jersey Library Association, said her organization sought to have the bill introduced and voted on Thursday by the state Assembly and Senate as an emergency measure because the Legislature will not hold another session until November. She said there are many urban areas that operate on fiscal-year budgets — such as East Orange, Newark and Bayonne — that could be affected.

Ms. Tumulty said there are 245 municipalities in New Jersey with municipal public libraries, and she expected them all to be affected once the new cap law takes effect.

“All the municipalities will be impacted,” she said. “As soon as they start putting their budgets together for next year, they’ll realize the implications.”

Assemblyman Bill Baroni, a Republican whose district includes Jamesburg and Monroe, said he would support the legislation if it is introduced.

“We need to do everything we can through legislation and regulation to save Jamesburgs library,” said Mr. Baroni, who is running for a state Senate seat being vacated by Republican Peter Inverso.

He introduced an alternative bill Thursday that would exempt library spending from the levy cap for one year. He said he was unsure whether the Coleman emergency bill would be introduced and wanted to have a backup plan. He said the alternative measure is truly an emergency bill that would at least give us more time to fix it permanently.

Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein, a Democrat from the same district as Mr. Baroni, supports the cap exemption for libraries, but said it was unlikely that the Coleman bill would be introduced. She said a letter would be written to Gov. Corzine asking him to exempt library spending from the cap. The governor has publicly opposed adding exemptions to the tax levy cap in the past.

Sen. Inverso could not be reached for comment.

The exemptions would seem logical, except that they create the impetus for more exemptions to be built into the cap, ultimately rendering it useless. That may not be a bad idea, but it doesn’t address the real need for reform any better than the cap.

I would move libraries off budget entirely, creating a separate dedicated tax similar to the open space tax that South Brunswick, Cranbury, Monroe and Middlesex County. It would be the local equivalent of Mercer County, which has a county system and a dedicate tax.

The tax would be flat and towns could be given the opportunity to make municipal contributions, as well. And libraries could still rely on Friends chapters and foundations for extra cash.

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