Gloucester County Budget Passes, Cuts Taxes and Spending by Millions

A budget that slashes taxes and spending for the third straight year met with unanimous approval from the Gloucester County freeholders Wednesday night.

The $198.7 million county budget cuts spending by about 1.6 percent from 2011, a drop of $3.2 million, and cuts the amount raised by taxes by just over $4.1 million.

Freeholder Director Robert Damminger called it a “bare bones” budget with an emphasis on shared services wherever possible.

“This is an economy where every dollar counts to every family,” Damminger said. “We pledged to cut spending and cut taxes, and it was not easy considering the county faced a reduction in almost every area of revenue and decrease in ratables due to the economy.”

That decrease included a nearly $100 million drop at Sunoco's complex in West Deptford. While a $15 settlement with Sunoco has passed the West Deptford committee, it's currently tied up in a lawsuit against the township, and county officials indicated —potentially around $3.3 million—wasn't likely to be included in this year's budget.

Some of the savings over the past years has come through job attrition—since 2008, 221 positions have been eliminated through retirements, and this year's salaries and benefits spending drops by $100,000 compared to last year.

Cuts to operating expenses, changes to health benefit plans and tighter controls on purchasing all led to the reductions this year, the freeholders said.

The freeholders also cited long-term planning, including a six-year capital improvement plan, as part of what's being done to keep the budget in line.

“When you plan prudently and responsibly you can adjust for the tough times,” freeholder Deputy Director Joe Chila. “That is why we have completed major projects and are continuing to cut the county’s debt.”

That debt reduction comes in at $47.6 million over the past three years, Chila said, and projections for the next five years show the county aiming to cut the debt by nearly a third.

Republican freeholders Larry Wallace and Vince Nestore have said they're glad to see the county has gone to what they termed a "Republican-style budget," calling it proof of the value of dissenting voices on the board.

"Are we heading in the right direction? Yes,” Wallace said previously.