PARSIPPANY – The COVID pandemic has resulted in plummeting tax revenues and dramatically increased service expenditures putting significant strain on Townships finances. However, there is still an underlying structural deficit that needs to be addressed to avoid further damage to residential tax rates. The past three years have seen some of the worst government mismanagement of anywhere in the state. Most of us have already noticed our utility bills skyrocket from the improper usage of utility surplus to artificially limit tax increases. Soriano made the elimination of this practice a central promise of his 2017 campaign but made little progress in addressing this. As a result, the Township no longer has any surplus money to draw from and is forced to make this revenue up in this budget through either increased taxation, budget cuts, or a more creative solution that will only postpone the crisis.
Soriano has proposed issuing a five-million-dollar bond to supplement revenues and prevent a sizable tax increase from slamming residents this year, an election year. The Township Council, none of whom are running for re-election this year, have questioned the need to patch our budget with this loan. We believe the Mayor should work with the Council to address their concerns and present a budget that is appropriate to deal with the crisis. Unfortunately, it seems Mayor Soriano would rather pass the buck onto the Council, threatening layoffs and service cuts if he doesn’t get his way and spreading rumors among employees that the Township Council will be to blame. This kind of behavior is unnecessary, unproductive and beneath the dignity of the office. As Mayor, Soriano only has one constitutional role. It isn’t posting photo ops on Facebook or cutting ribbons, it’s proposing a budget, answering any resulting questions to the Council, and getting it approved.