The Good News: A Flat Tax Rate this year
The Really Good News: The County and School Board also have no tax
increase which means a flat tax all the way around!
In a year of inflation, supply chain
issues, and economic uncertainty, this administration and all of the
governments that make up your tax bill spent a lot of time making sure your
government provided a level of certainty in an uncertain world.
Besides having no tax increase, this
proposed budget is also a reflection of our priorities.
- Keeping you safe! As of the introduction of this budget, all
171 police officer spots are filled.
This is our commitment to funding our police department to keep those in
Hamilton safe. Moreover, we added two
new firefighters which allowed us to reduce overtime costs. It not only makes the township safer but
makes it more cost efficient.
- Keeping you healthy! This budget provides money to improve outdoor
recreation opportunities by updating tennis courts and replacing broken
playground equipment. We want to
encourage everyone to step away from their computers, tvs, phones after 2 years
of Zoom meetings and remote learning and get fresh air in our beautiful parks. We are also bringing back our summer
recreation programs and full lineup of community events for the first time in
two years.
- Updating our infrastructure! We have partnered with the federal government
for required improvements to Dam Site 8 (in Veteran’s Park). By allocating $1.65m to updating the dam, the
federal government will fund the rest of the projects (over $4m) to ensure we
are protecting our community from flooding while maintaining the beauty of
Veteran’s Park. We also dedicate millions
more to improving our roads in town – while also taking advantage of grants
from the State. We also will work to
take advantage of the bipartisan infrastructure law to improve more of our
roads and bridges.
After two years of ups and downs
navigating a pandemic, I’m excited for Hamilton’s future and believe this
budget sets the foundation for even greater things to come!