Belmar municipal budget sees $1.75M increase

BELMAR — The borough’s  mayor and council introduced the 2024 municipal budget during their April 9 regular council meeting, with an increase of nearly $1.75 million.

This year’s municipal budget is $24,569,507.82, which is a $1,745,412 increase from last year’s total of $22,824,095.

The tax levy, the amount to be raised by taxes, is set at $9,134,327.50, which is an increase of $356,950.

The estimated tax rate is 0.517, which is an increase from last year’s rate of 0.498. Last year’s local tax rate had seen an increase from 2022 by 4.33 percent.

The average assessed property this year has been estimated at $590,507. The local tax bill per residential property for this year has been estimated at $3,029, compared to last year’s estimate of $2,940. This is an increase of $113 for the year at approximately $9.42 per month.

“Our (Chief Financial Officer) Lorraine Carafa did a great job with the finance team, everyone worked hard on it,” Borough Administrator Kevin Kane told The Coast Star. “It’s getting tougher and tougher every year, with the CAP restrictions, and costs of living keeps going up, all the fixed costs keep rising…but this is definitely a fiscally responsible budget the residents of Belmar should be very happy with.”

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