Fiscal Responsibility

Taxpayers in Hoboken are victims of a dysfunctional relationship between the Mayor’s office and City Council. The immediate result is an utter failure to control spending during the last several years coupled with an estimated 47% rise in property taxes. All residents, renters and commercial property owners are impacted by property tax increases. A landlord may pass on increased property taxes through a tax surcharge for rent controlled tenants or a rent increase for non-rent controlled tenants. The conduct of our elected officials directly led to state takeover of Hoboken’s municipal fiscal operations. We can do better.

Although the Mayor and City Council each blame the other for this situation, both share responsibility. The Council shoulders substantial responsibility for this State takeover because of their failure to exercise statutorily mandated oversight responsibilities under the Faulkner Act. The Council’s conduct over past several years demonstrates tacit acceptance of overspending rather than genuine concern about fiscal management. The victims are taxpaying residents and city employees. We can do better.

Here are some basic measures we should strive for when balancing our budget in order to stabilize taxes in coming years:

Adhere to the basic budgeting principle that recurring expenses must be matched against recurring revenues. We cannot spend more than is coming in and then look for one-time solutions to fill gaping holes in the budget, as we have done in the past.
Conduct a complete review of every city department to determine where cuts in spending can be made and efficiency can be improved. Unfortunately, this may include considering lay-offs, pay cuts or demotions if necessary.
Consider a citywide revaluation of property taxes to stabilize tax rates and develop a more equitable tax base in the long term. However, a revaluation must be fair to all and avoid undue financial hardship upon residents that may be adversely impacted, by no fault of their own, by a citywide revaluation.
There should be an evaluation of the Police and Fire Departments to determine where expenses can be reduced. When contracts are renegotiated, the City must ensure that salaries and benefits for public safety employees do not represent a disproportionate proportion of our city budget. Best practices for compensation should be relied on from data available nationwide.

The focus of the Council and the Mayor should be issues, not politics. If city government is to move into the 21st century we must place the operations of city government under a microscope and implement innovative solutions to persistent problems.

Fiscal Mismanagement at City Hall