WALL TOWNSHIP — The Wall Township Board of Educating held its final budget hearing on April 26, detailing the completed $82,200,000 spending plan for district members, which the New Jersey Department of Education approved on April 18.
The 2022-2023 school year budget is a 4 percent or $3,160,000 increase from the 2021-2022 budget, which was $79,040,000.
There is an annual increase on taxes at $.004, within the two percent state tax levy cap. $70,521,283 of the budget is derived from the tax levy. The 2 percent change represents $1,382,770 in the tax levy from last year.
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The average home in Wall Township is assessed at $486,800, so with a two percent tax impact, that translates to an annual increase in taxes of $18 for the mean home value.
“We stayed within the allowable two percent increase in the tax levy; although the board had the ability of using a bank cap in the amount of over $800,000, it was the Board’s decision not to utilize that bank cap to balance the budget,” said Board Administrator Brian Smyth.
The remaining $11,678,717 of the budget not funded by the tax levy comes mainly from state aid, reserve drawdowns and the budget fund balance.
“The board relied on utilizing its surplus that was allowed to be expanded in the pandemic; we utilized a portion of that as well as drawdown withdrawal from our reserve accounts. We have a capital reserve account, a maintenance reserve account, and an emergency reserve account; we used all three to balance this budget,” said Mr. Smyth.
Reserve accounts are funds set aside by the district in previous years for unpredictable expenses or losses to pay for maintenance and capital improvements.
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