ARTICLE: Garwood’s Budget Deserves Serious Attention, Not Political Soundbites
By Marc Lazarow | Published in Clark-Garwood Patch, September 18, 2022
As a member of the Finance Committee, and Chair for the last 4 years, working with the Garwood Borough staff and professionals requires meticulous organization and incredible attention to detail, all of which are traits that I have honed as an English teacher for 20 years. I can assure you the NJ State-dictated budgeting process is not as straightforward as I wish it was. It can often be convoluted and restrictive, but I worked closely with our CFO, administrator, and attorneys. Plus, I did my homework to navigate these challenges as well as participated in, or led, along with Council President Jen Blumenstock, voluntary Special Budget meetings to ensure the public and our more-recently created Citizens Advisory Panel could provide feedback, which has even led to budget revisions. We do this because equally as important as creating a sound budget for our departments and taxpayers is ensuring the budget process is transparent and as simple to understand as possible.
It has come to my attention that Councilwoman Salmon has been claiming in her campaign that the current Council has mismanaged the Vermella PILOT (Payment In Lieu of Taxes) funding. I find this assertion lacking in substance and credibility given the fact that Councilwoman Salmon has not attended any of the budget training that is offered to all new Council members at the beginning of one’s term. Every single Democrat currently on that dais has attended these trainings because we value having a comprehensive understanding of the nuances of municipal budgeting under local governing laws and the very serious repercussions of not abiding by them, most seriously the possibility of having the State overtake our local government with the power to raise taxes at an uncapped amount or force us to reduce service and layoff workers.
Her campaign ticket has questioned where this PILOT money “has gone” and she should indeed understand this well. Not only have I spoken with her on the phone answering her questions, but also answered them publicly in our special budget meetings. So, either she finds these answers politically inconvenient, or she doesn’t truly understand because she is not well-versed in the single most important thing we as elected officials do on Council. For completeness sake, the majority of this year’s PILOT funds went towards limiting the impact to the taxpayer as a result of soaring inflation particularly related to rising utility, fuel costs and employee health insurance increases, as well as initial payments for the Fire Department's rescue platform ladder truck purchase from 2019. When that large equipment purchase was undertaken, it was with the understanding that PILOT funds would start in 2022 Also, $150,000 was given to the Garwood Board of Education to help with their costs and Councilwoman Salmon agreed to that. It is worth noting that Councilwoman Salmon has voted yes to paying all of the town’s bills at every Council meeting she has attended. We can’t pay our bills without a properly funded budget. In some ways I’m hopeful her attacks are based on ignorance, as knowingly creating a budget with underfunded line items is not only a negligence of duty, but a great way to have the State of NJ take over our town. I was very disappointed when she and her running mate, Councilwoman Loffredo who resigned last week, refused to vote yes to necessary budget increases, specifically in the gasoline line item, as that is an example of knowingly underfunding the budget and was pointed out as such by our CFO that night.
Having served on the Finance Committee for several years, two of which, 2018 and 2020, saw a zero dollar tax impact, I have the experience and appreciation for balancing expenditures and taxes. I also have an understanding of the history of what revenues are available, how the PILOT disbursements will impact our short-term and long-term budget, and using that knowledge to support 5-year capital plans for our departments does not come from 10 months of serving on Council. It comes from rolling up one’s sleeves, attending training, serving for 30-40 hours of Finance Committee meetings each year for five of my six years on Council, and communicating that information.. I am proud of the work that I have achieved alongside Council President Blumenstock and if elected, I look forward to working with Clarissa Nolde and the rest of the Council to make sure that our town’s finances are managed thoughtfully all while trying anyway possible to limit the impact to Garwood taxpayers.
Garwood Councilman Marc Lazarow
Candidate for Re-Election, Garwood Council