To: Residents of South Toms River                                                                                

As many of you know the Mayor and Council have been working on the 2008 municipal budget in preparation of an introduction date in March. We had prepared and were making the final minor adjustments to a budget that would have required an increase in our municipal tax rate of only $.055 per hundred or $118.00 per year for the average household. We had several good ideas and suggestions from residents at our annual budget workshops held every Thursday evening in February and we thank those who came to the meetings and gave us their input.

Many of you may also have been reading about the Governor’s budget proposals and some of the ways that his current proposed budget will affect the state. While everyone agrees that the state’s budget is out of control and painful cuts must be made we believe that it is necessary that those cuts be made so that everyone shares in the pain.

Unfortunately, one of the Governor’s proposals is to eliminate 100% of the aid to reduce property taxes to towns with fewer than 5000 residents while not reducing that same aid at all to towns with over 10,000 residents. Needless to say, that means that South Toms River and nearly 200 other small towns’ budgets will be devastated. For our town alone that loss of aid amounts to about $240,000.00 per year which can only be made up through an additional increase in local property taxes. If the Governor’s budget passes as written the average household in South Toms River will have to pay a property tax increase of over $325.00 per year while taxpayers in larger towns will continue to receive the full amount of state aid that they received in past years. Your Mayor and Council feel that this is unfair and unacceptable to our residents and are actively contacting the state Legislators and the Governor’s office to make sure that they do not support this disastrous budget proposal. We also strongly urge each and every resident to contact their state representatives and to tell them that the cuts that are made must be made fairly. We all understand the need to bring the state budget under control but to place all the burden on the backs of the small towns is simply not right.

We have listed the contact information for the state officials below and please don’t be shy about letting them know exactly how you feel.

Mayor Michael Keene                                                                         Council President George Greitz, Jr.

Council members; Oscar Cradle, Carla Kearney, Kevin McCormack, Anthony (Tony) Tafaro, & Sandford Ross, Jr.

Governor Jon Corzine                         609-292-6000             PO Box 001 Trenton, NJ 08625

Senator Andrew Ciesla                       732-840-9028             852 Hwy 70 Brick, NJ 08724

Assemblyman James Holzpfel 732-840-9028             852 Hwy 70 Brick, NJ 08724

Assemblyman David E Wolfe 732-840-9028             852 Hwy 70 Brick, NJ 08724

All of the above can be contacted via email at: www.state.nj.us

01 10 2008 BOROUGH OF SOUTH TOMS RIVER NOTICE Pursuant to the Open Public Meetings Act of NJ C231 of PL 1975, the following is a schedule of the Borough of South Toms River Land Use Board /Planning Board Meetings, for the year 2008. All meetings are held at the Borough Hall, 144 Mill Street, South Toms River, NJ. On the third Tuesday of the month Meetings are held at 7:30 pm. MEETINGS: January 15, 2026 February 19, 2026 March 18, 2025 8 April 15, 2025 May 20, 2025 June 17, 2025 July 15, 2025 August NO MEETING September 16 2008 October 21, 2025 November 18, 2025 December 16, 2008. Organization Meeting January 20, 2026 at 7:15 Regular meeting will follow at 7:30. William E Gleason Secretary South Toms River Land Use Board