Wildwood School Taxes

Wildwood residents likely to pay higher school taxes
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609) 463-6716
Press of Atlantic City
Published: Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Updated: Wednesday, March 22, 2006

WILDWOOD — If the school district receives the same amount of state aid that it received in the current school year, the school-tax rate will likely increase 7 cents in the 2006-07 budget, school Business Administrator Sandra Becker said.

Becker and other school officials throughout the state are waiting to hear what those state aid figures will be following Tuesday's budget address by Gov. Jon S. Corzine.

“School aid for most districts will be flat,” Corzine told the audience assembled at a joint session of the state Legislature in Trenton.

Becker said she expects to know later in the week how flat the aid will be.

In the 2005-06 school year, Wildwood received $4.34 million in state aid in the general budget along with more than $751,000 in early childhood aid and $427,000 in demonstrably effective aid, both considered special revenues.

If those aid figures stay the same, Wildwood's local tax rate is expected to increase from 46 cents per $100 of assessed property valuation last year to 53 cents in 2006, a 16 percent increase, Becker said.

The owner of a $100,000 home would pay $530 in school taxes, compared to $460 last year.

That would also mean the tax levy, or the amount to be raised by Wildwood taxpayers, would rise to $9.37 million, a $1.36 million increase over last year. Meanwhile, the total budget is expected to jump from $14.96 million to $15.77 million.

Becker said most of that $800,586 increase is due to contractual obligations such as salary, insurance and health-benefit increases. Utility or energy costs are also expected to increase in the coming year.

“It's those big categories. Things the district doesn't have a whole lot of control over,” Becker said.

The district expects to have 882 students from grades pre-kindergarten to 12. There were 857 students in the district as of October 2005, Becker said. The increase is expected in the elementary grades.

A public hearing on the budget is scheduled for March 29 at the high school.

To e-mail Trudi Gilfillian at The Press:TGilfillian@pressofac.com