HOBOKEN – In a packed meeting at City Hall Wednesday night, the City Council voted 5-4 to table a resolution opposing Mayor Dawn Zimmer’s planned layoffs of 18 police officers and demotions for 19 senior officers.

“We have to balance responsible spending while making sure we keep residents safe,” said Councilwoman Beth Mason, who voted in the minority and offered the resolution to direct Zimmer and her administration to halt the planned layoffs.

Voting in the majority to table the resolution were Rhavi Bhalla, David Mello, Peter Cunningham, Mike Lenz and Carol Marsh.

Joining Mason in the minority were Theresa Castellano, Michael Russo, and Nino Giacchi.

The vote came after several of the approximately 200 police officers and residents who packed the council chambers spoke out against the planned cuts, including Josue Velez, 24, a soldier who returned from Iraq to find out he was being laid off.

Zimmer said yesterday that the council doesn’t have the power to stop the layoffs scheduled to take effect Sept. 24, a course of action she has called the “most difficult decision” she has made as a public official.

“The resolution clearly crosses the line that separates the roles of the governing body and the administration, and is a patent attempt to usurp the role of the administration,” Zimmer said in the statement.

Dear Friend,

Recently the City of Hoboken filed its year-end financial statement with the Department of Local Government Services, which revealed a budget surplus of almost $20 million.    This surplus belongs to you, the taxpayers. I am calling on Mayor Zimmer to return this money to you immediately in property tax relief.

The surplus was created as a result of the crushing 47% tax increase.  This increase resulted in you overpaying thousands of dollars in property taxes. Your money should be returned immediately.

Please stand with me in my call to return this money to the people of Hoboken and help provide much-needed property tax relief.  Together we can make Hoboken a better and more affordable place to live and raise a family.  As always if you are in need of assistance or have any concerns please do not hesitate to contact me at (201)-916-8244 or Beth@MasonCityCouncil.org

Saturday, August 14, 2010
By MARK MAURER
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

HOBOKEN – Hoboken’s Second Ward Councilwoman Beth Mason is calling on Mayor Dawn Zimmer to use a portion of the city’s budget surplus to reduce residents’ property tax bills.

In a letter to city residents, Mason pointed out the results of the city’s year-end financial statement filed with the Department of Local Government Services, which revealed a budget surplus of almost $20 million.
The Division of Local Government Services received the annual financial statement in early August. About $11.8 million of the $20 million total could be used for tax relief, according to financial reports.

Mason called on Zimmer to immediately return the money to the taxpayers in property tax relief.  “The surplus was created as a result of the crushing 47 percent tax increase. This increase resulted in you overpaying thousands of dollars in property taxes. Your money should be returned immediately,” Mason wrote in the letter.

Business Administrator Arch Liston said Mason’s suggestion to return the $11.8 million to the taxpayers would be “totally irresponsible.” He said he anticipates substantial healthcare costs and the negotiation of six to seven labor contracts in 2011 and that the surplus will be needed then.

In October 2008, then-fiscal monitor Judy Tripodi approved a 47 percent tax hike, in order to buttress the underfunded budget.  Zimmer said Mason’s allegations are untrue.
“My administration is working every day to decrease operating expenses,” Zimmer said.