No easy budget decisions for township
By ROBERT LINNEHAN
The Cherry Hill Sun
4/18/2010

In the 40 years Mayor Bernie Platt has lived in Cherry Hill, he can’t remember the township being embroiled in a worse economic period. Platt unveiled several new cost-cutting measures the township is considering implementing and took the suggestions of residents at the first of several public budget forums at the Cherry Hill Public Library.

Unfunded mandates from the state, a reduction in state aid, and rising overall costs have attributed to the state of the township, Platt reported in an opening speech to a small audience recently. The mayor unveiled that Cherry Hill is likely facing an $8 million deficit for next year.

In the past three years, Platt said, Cherry Hill has lost more than 30 percent of its state aid. Building permits and licensing fees have also dropped more than 30 percent, which has suffocated the township’s ability to raise revenue through interest payments from Cherry Hill investments.

“These losses are further compounded by our contractual obligation and state-mandated costs to the pension fund and to this public library,” Platt said. “Going forward, with the severe drop in overall revenues, the township could be facing an $8 million deficit next year.”

Because of the uncertain economic period, Platt said he is backing Assemblyman Louis Greenwald’s proposed plan to allow municipalities to collect a sales tax. As a retail destination, he said the township should have the opportunity to impose a 1 percent local purpose tax on untaxed items such as clothing.

This would be a new vehicle for Cherry Hill to fund local government and provide tax relief, he said.

“This change would not make us totally dependent on construction fees,” Platt said.

The township will also ask its collective bargaining units to open their contracts, Platt said, and it was determined that all non-contractual salaries will be frozen going into the next fiscal year.

The public library could see reduced hours in the future and the elimination of several positions.

It’s an uncertain time for the state, Platt said, and Cherry Hill must be adaptable to survive.

“And put quite simply, those who embrace change will be the winners and those who resist it will be the losers,” he said. “Further, the new system will come with strong shocks that will have long term effects on every level of government.”

While it wasn’t a packed meeting, several citizens offered suggestions to Platt and members of Council to help raise revenue and drop costs within the township.

Glenn Mohrfeld, a resident and small business owner in Cherry Hill, suggested the township adopt a four-day, 32-hour work week to reduce costs. This would be an automatic payroll reduction of 20 percent, he said.

He did not, however, agree with the possible plan to impose a 1 percent local purpose sales tax on township businesses.

“The 1 percent purpose tax is not a good idea. You’re a business man, I’m a business man, and we will have to compete with neighboring areas that don’t have the tax,” he said to Platt.

Bill Dombro, a resident of Queen Anne Road, presented Platt with a list of his suggestions. Dombro recommended the township look to implementing a method to allow citizens a way to pay their taxes online and opt out of paper tax bills. He also suggested doing the same thing with the Cherry Hill news letter.

It would reduce the amount of mailers Cherry Hill has to send out each year, he said, and reduce costs in that area.

Platt said the township is currently looking into setting up an online system to allow residents to pay township bills or taxes.