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To the Editor:
I am writing concerning a discovery I made today when paying my property taxes. I noticed that my taxes, relative to what I paid the last quarter, increased a whopping 11.4%. I was under the impression, from the mailing we all received from the tax office a month ago, that the overall tax rate had only gone up about 3%.
Upon calling the tax office, they said that my taxes had, in fact, gone up by 11.4% because “there was a $95 million reduction in taxable property value in Neptune Township due to Sandy. The town still has to collect the same amount of total tax receipts, so taxes were raised.”
This statement is concerning on two levels: first, $95 million is a lot of property value to be permanently lost to the storm. That would be hundreds of homes or many acres of property. Between insurance, state money and FEMA money, I believe everyone has been made whole — and all property has been restored. Where is this major amount of property that had to be permanently removed from the tax rolls because is was destroyed beyond recovery? The difference between the typical 3% annual tax increase and the 11.4% increase is 8.4%. If taxes went up 8.4% beyond normal for all property owners in the town, that would result in collections many times exceeding the taxes collected from $95 million worth of property. The magnitude of tax increase just makes no sense and the rationale given to me is inadequate on its face.
My second concern is how the town can raise taxes 11.4% in a single year– an increase that is about 4-times the average increase of the previous few years, and no one knows about it? They have completely hidden this fact until now, when the tax bills went out. I would have thought that there would have been some sort of public outcry about this.
I would value any information Blogfinger readers could provide to explain where the large quantity of permanently lost property value is in Neptune and how our elected officials pulled off this enormous tax increase without any public debate?
I can’t wait to see what happens with the reassessment…..
DAVID HEPLER
Ocean Grove, NJ, July 25, 2014.
Editor’s Note: David——By a miraculous coincidence, Bernard Haney, the Neptune Township Tax Assessor, will be at the OG Homeowners Assoc. meeting tomorrow morning, Saturday, July 26. 10:00 in the Community Room.
Gee, why hasn’t the HOA proactively prepared us for this increase instead of waiting until a few days before the 3rd quarter payment is due so that Mr. Haney can keep us informed ?
Is it possible that the Home Groaners Assoc. is all groans and no action? —Paul @Blogfinger
Shark River part of Neptune had extensive damage to homes with flooding everywhere. Boats floated out of the river and into this front yard. Blogfinger file photo ©
I commented upon this topic several weeks ago in the comments section of another tax related Blogfinger article. A Neptune Township budget presentation stated the average property tax increase would be in the 2 or 3 percent range (I have to reference my notes). This presentation was surely prepared and presented after the loss of the $95 million of taxable property, right? I will not attend the meeting on Saturday because there is only one thing that is certain, and that is my tax bill will not change regardless of what is said in the there.
Since Neptune does not do anything about the abandoned buildings, property values are probably going down, now that taxes are going up on we who still pay them, values will probably decline more!
Let’s put the blame where it belongs, the Neptune Township Tax office and our elected Neptune Committepersons. Their failure to communicate to the public about a huge tax increase is irresponsible. Individual residents shouldn’t have to make calls to the Tax Office to get an explaination of a 11.4% increase!
I can’t believe that ALL of Neptune was raised over 11%….and Shark River…..
Not to mention the Re-Evaluation is coming up on top of neptunes increase.
The 2% cap can be exceeded by a public referendum with a majority of town residents approving. Did the residents vote themselves a double digit tax increase for 2015? If not, I will be pressing hard at the OGHOA meeting. My taxes also went up 11%.
Too bad we don’t have more responsible public officials. They simply don’t care how much they hurt the taxpayers. If my taxes went up 11% to pay for a park, I’m going to raise hell.
In addition, Gov. Chris Christie recently announced that the average property tax increase in New Jersey last year was a relatively modest 1.7 percent, a fact he will use to claim sustained progress on one of the state’s perpetual political issues, a state government official told The Associated Press.
According to the administration’s data, more than 80 local governments and school boards out of more than 1,100 decreased taxes last year and 160 had increases of less than 1 percent.
So what’s with Neptune? I thought there was a 2% cap?
How about Neptune stops spending more money than they have? I guess nurses are people that shouldn’t be living in Ocean Grove since my property taxes now already equal 26% of my take home pay and that does not account for the revaluation. It is time to start throwing tea in the harbor.
Recently Neptune Twp. announced that it was considering purchasing some properties in the Shark River area that were never rebuilt. after Sandy. They want to use those lots to create a park.
Of course, a park generates no taxes, and the park would not be enjoyed by Ocean Grovers.
How about taking over some OG north end properties by eminent domain. Save the ecology of the area and provide a park for Grovers?