Photos
Manna From Trenton! State Boosts Paterson’s 2013 Aid Award, Cutting Budget Deficit Below $1 Million
Wednesday, February 27, 2013 • 5:22pm
PATERSON, NJ – The state on Wednesday sent Paterson some good news – the city’s Transition Aid award will be $2.4 million larger than originally anticipated.
That extra funding will wipe away most of Paterson’s remaining budget deficit for 2013, leaving the city with a gap of about $900,000 that still has to be covered. Officials said the increased aid should allow the city to resolve its budget without resorting to the layoffs that had been talked about in recent months.
By closing the rest of the deficit, city officials will produce a budget that would include a tax increase of about 3.5 percent.
The New Jersey Division of Local Government Services last fall had told city officials to anticipate $20 million in Transition Aid in the preliminary budget. That left the city facing an $8.5 million deficit. Since then, the city administration has found ways to close that gap to about $3.3 million – partly by eliminating vacant jobs and partly by borrowing about $3.8 million to cover expenses due this year.
Mayor Jeffery Jones’ administration plans to ask the City Council to approve budget amendments designed to close the deficit at a special meeting next Tuesday. Officials said they want to hold a public hearing and a final vote on the budget the week after next.
PatersonPress.com will update this story later this evening.
