State aid trims Red Bank tax rate
BY SHARON LEFF Staff Writer

RED BANK - The borough received $350,000 in municipal aid from the state, which will lower the projected increase in the tax rate by 2.4 cents.

The announcement was made at the July 14 council meeting.

The budget for 2008 introduced in March called for an increase of 7.7 cents per $100 of assessed valuation in the municipal tax rate. With the state aid, the overall increase is 5.3 cents.

The municipal tax rate would be approximately 46 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, an increase from 38 cents per $100 assessed valuation in 2007.

The borough has not yet adopted the $19.1 million proposed budget for the calendar year 2008.

The owner of an average home assessed at $406,627 will pay $6,481 in taxes per year. This is a 3.4 percent increase from 2007, when the average residential tax bill was $6,266.

The total tax rate per $100 of assessed value is $1.59.

Chief Financial Officer Frank Mason said the amount of aid the borough receives differs every year and is at the discretion of the state. He said that last year Red Bank received no state aid, but in 2006 the borough received $125,000 and in previous years received $100,000.

"This is a direct reduction in taxes. It's a penny and a half off the local rate," Mason said.

The amended budget calls for $10,107,291 to be raised by local municipal taxes, an increase from $8.59 million in 2007.

The budget is scheduled to be adopted at the July 28 Borough Council meeting at 7:30 p.m. in borough hall on Monmouth Street.