Page 4 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • July 24, 2013 Franklin Lakes Bergen County Tax Board sets rate for 2013 by Frank J. McMahon The Bergen County Board of Taxation has set a $1.557 tax rate for the Borough of Franklin Lakes for the 2013 tax year. Property tax bills will now be based on that figure. This new rate reflects a 2.2 cent increase in the bor- ough’s municipal tax rate that was set by the county last year and will result in a $227 property tax increase for the homeowner whose property is assessed at the borough’s average value of $1,030,000. The borough’s total tax rate is comprised of a Bergen County tax of 24.1 cents, which represents an increase of four tenths of a cent over the 2012 tax rate; the Bergen County open space tax rate of three tenths of a cent, which is the same as last year; the school district’s tax rate of 61 cents, which represents an increase of eight tenths of a cent; the regional school tax of 43.4 cents, which represents an increase of seven tenths of a cent; the library tax of 3.5 cents, which represents a decrease of one tenth of a cent; and the municipal tax rate of 23.4 cents, which represents an increase of six tenths of a cent over the 2012 municipal tax rate. The tax rates set by the county for surrounding towns are $1.555 for Wyckoff, $2.566 for Oakland, and $1.664 for Mahwah. The obligation of a property owner is determined by multiplying a property’s assessed value in hundreds of dol- lars by the tax rate. The borough’s new tax rate is based on the borough’s $16,530,012 budget that was adopted by the council in May. That budget represents an increase of $64,850 over the previous year’s adopted budget, or an increase of 0.39 percent. The amount to be raised by taxation to support that budget is $11,018,999, which is a 1.9 percent increase over the previous year but under the maximum allowable state tax levy cap of two percent. At a budget presentation, Franklin Lakes Borough Administrator Gregory Hart pointed out that 14.9 percent of a property owner’s total property tax is for municipal purposes, while 39.3 percent is for the local school district, 28.2 percent is for the regional high school district, 2.3 percent is for the public library, and the balance is for the county. He also pointed out that the borough’s tax rate is the second lowest in Bergen County. Some notable line items included in the borough’s 2013 budget are $5.29 million for salaries and wages, $1.66 mil- lion for debt service, $1.48 million for health insurance, $1.45 million for the municipal library, $890,000 for pen- sion contributions, and $730,000 for garbage and recycling collection and disposal. The budget also includes $296,561 from the library’s return of asset funds. The returned money was used to decrease taxes. According to Meena Sivakumar, the borough’s deputy tax collector, the third quarter tax bills that are due Aug. 1 are expected to be mailed out before the end of July. The grace period for the payment of that property tax will be 25 days from the date of the mailing of the bills. Gracious gifts Oakland/Franklin Lakes Rotary Club President Peter Kikot makes a donation to Oakland Police Detective Mark Piercy, right, and Franklin Lakes Police Officer Richard Osenbruck, left, for their violence/drug education curriculum programs.