Lower Merion Citizens for Responsible Budgeting (CRB)
Resources
- Montco Municipal Millage Rates
- Municipal Bond Yields
- Moody's
- Moody's Economy.com
- Standard & Poors
- Fitch Ratings
- Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA)
- Main Line Life
- Main Line Times
- Voting Record
- Wall Street Journal Online
Articles
- Understanding Reserves
(GFOA PDF) - Tax Debate, Letter to Main
Line Life - Determinants of Credit Quality (GFR PDF)
Township News Links
LM Township property-tax hike now 10.8%
December 22 , 2010
By Cheryl Allison- Mainlinemedianews.com
The vote to adopt the $54.7-million budget came quickly after that, with Reed, McElhaney, Manos and Commissioners Rick Churchill, Jane Dellheim, Brian Gordon, Steven Lindner and Liz Rogan in favor. Democratic Commissioner Cheryl Gelber joined Republicans Brown, Rosenzweig, Lewis Gould and Scott Zelov in opposition.
The 10.8-percent tax hike is less than two percentage points below the 12.7-percent increase township manager Douglas Cleland had proposed in November.
Only five of 21 budget motions OK'd
December 3 , 2010
By Cheryl Allison- Mainlinemedianews.com
In Wednesday night’s budget discussion in Lower Merion, a number of motions sought to address the area that has attracted the most attention in public comments this year.
That is what many say is a need to bring township government employee pay and benefits more in line with economic conditions and private sector trends.
As the largest component of the operating budget, personnel costs are logically the area to eye for new restraint, citizens have said, suggesting that some township practices and benefits are obsolete or too generous.
Tax-weary crowd fired up at recent budget hearing
December 3 , 2010
By Cheryl Allison- Mainlinemedianews.com
In November, Democratic commissioners had rejected a call to draw down the township’s fund balance below Cleland’s proposed level of 17 percent of expenditures, to 15 percent. The board has set a policy goal of maintaining reserves of between 15 and 18 percent.
Commissioner Phil Rosenzweig’s call to take the balance down to the lower end of the range failed again, but when he tried once more with a 16-percent alternative, Gelber, Gordon and Commissioner George Manos joined Republicans Rosenzweig, Jenny Brown, Lewis Gould and Scott Zelov in favor for a 7-6 vote.
The narrowly successful vote produced the most significant potential budget change, removing the need for about $500,000 in new taxes, or just under 2 percent on the real estate millage rate.
LM Township Tax Increase Overwhelmingly Opposed by Citizens
November 28 , 2010
By Cheryl Allison- Mainlinemedianews.com
Last week, with the largest increase in the township’s share of real-estate taxes since 2003 on the table, the budget debate is drawing the largest crowds since that same year.
Comments from a packed boardroom Nov. 17 overwhelmingly opposed a proposed 12.7-percent increase in the tax rate.
LM Township proposes 12.7% tax hike
November 6 , 2010
By Cheryl Allison- Mainlinemedianews.com
Lower Merion residents would see a 12.7-percent increase in their township real-estate taxes next year – the highest since 2003 – under a proposed 2011 budget released late Friday afternoon.
The .48-mill increase in the tax rate would add $174 to the tax bill for the owner of a single-family home assessed at the township average of $363,000 (about 56 percent of market value). The typical home's township tax would rise to $1,546.
Local Debts Defy Easy Solution
Sept. 23 , 2010
By David Wessel - WSJ
State and local governments—which employ more workers (19.5 million) than manufacturing and construction combined—have promised over $3 trillion in retirement benefits, more by some estimates. Their pension assets are at least $1 trillion shy of that, according to the Pew Center on the States.
"It doesn't seem like the current path is sustainable without a dramatic jump in economic growth," says Randal Picker, a University of Chicago bankruptcy-law scholar. And the odds of that are slim. Property and sales-tax revenues aren't likely to grow rapidly enough to solve the problem.
LM Board to Refund Older Bonds at Lower Interest Rate
Sept. 22 , 2010
By Chreyl Allison - Mainlinemedianews.com
Chief Financial Officer Dean Dortone asked the board of commissioners Sept. 15 to authorize preparations for another bond refinancing in early 2011. The board’s finance committee recommended approval in a vote that was to be formalized Sept. 22.
Dortone said interest rates, while volatile, have remained so low that the township’s financial adviser, Nancy Winkler of Public Financial Management, came forward in August with a new refinancing opportunity for between $25 million and $30 million of Lower Merion’s older bonds.
Towns need to get tough with finances
Sept. 5 , 2010
By Chris Mondics- Inquirer
There was a time when fiscal problems were the recurring nightmares of only big cities.
Not anymore. Small cities and towns across Pennsylvania are having trouble making payroll, funding needed capital projects, and meeting their pension obligations. Most troubling, says Rhodes, is that few municipalities are doing the needed cost-cutting to get their financial houses in order.
LM Township Spending $4 Million for Trucks and Parking Meters
Aug 4 , 2010
By Cheryl Allison - Mainlinemedianews.com
Lower Merion commissioners have signaled their choices for two big-ticket purchases for 2010, but not without debate.
In both cases, the option favored is not the lower-cost alternative but one supporters say would serve the township better.
In committee meetings July 28, commissioners were asked to choose between two options to replace the township’s aging fleet of refuse and recycling-collection trucks.
Affluent Appear to Reduce Spending
July 17, 2010
By Motoko Rich - New York Times
The economic recovery has been helped in large part by the spending of the most affluent. Now, even the rich appear to be tightening their belts.
Less well-off consumers remained more frugal, most likely constrained by unemployment, declines in home values and the disappearance of easy credit. So the savings rate actually rose last year for those in middle-income brackets as they cut spending.
LM libraries facing Spending Reductions in 2011
July 15, 2010
By Cheryl Allison - Mainlinemedianews.com
Already in 2010 the system’s board of directors has been studying ways to cut costs. In June it took one step in that direction. It voted to join the Montgomery County Library and Information Network Consortium
Spending Reductions Needed for Montgomery County
July 12, 2010
By Keith Phucas - Mainlinemedianews.com
Montgomery County government has to cut expenses or raise revenue to fill a $22.5 million funding gap for the 2011 budget, and officials are expected to discuss shrinking the size of government.
When it's Taxpayer Funds, Mark Taylor Says Risk Worth Taking.
June 17, 2010
By Bonnie Cook- Inquirer
At their meeting in the township building on Lancaster Avenue in Ardmore, two of the 14 commissioners spoke emphatically against the project.
Lewis F. Gould said, "It is time to say this project has a very, very small likelihood of going forward. In order to save the resources of our taxpayers, it should come to an end."
But Commissioner Marck E. Taylor said every real estate project was "an exercise in calculated risk. I believe this one is worth taking."
Easttown Bids Out Trash, Saves Money.
June 17, 2010
By David O'Connell - LMCRB
Easttown accepts trash bid from Waste Management. The new agreement is for once a week trash pickup, up to eight 32 gallon containers for $318 for one year. The bid includes once a week bulk pickup and one 64 gallon single stream recycling container on the same day. By comparison, Lower Merion residents would have pay $504 and use six 45 gallon containers for the same amount of trash. Residents may opt for year yard pickup for $130 to $185 depending on the length of the driveway. Lower Merion is scheduled to purchase 10 new trucks this year to replace it's Trash/Recycle fleet.
Radnor group proposes hold on land purchases, debt.
June 17, 2010
By Sam Strike - Mainlinemedianews.com
A Radnor Township citizens’ budget advisory group has made a number of immediate recommendations to help close a budget gap including a moratorium on open-space purchases and debt issuance.
R.I. Town Faulters Under 17 Million G.O. Debt
June9, 2010
By Romy Varghese - WSJ
Central Falls, a small and deeply troubled Rhode Island city, has handed control of its finances to a receiver, a rare step that many in the $2.8 trillion municipal-bond market are watching to see how stressed municipalities may deal with deepening fiscal problems.
U.K. Is Urged to Trim Debt
June9, 2010
By Niel Shah - WSJ
Fitch Ratings warned of the need for greater austerity measures in a report that rattled investors.
IRS Raises Doubts on Municipal Bonds
June 7, 2010
Meena Thiruvengadam and Kelly Nolan - Wall Street Journal
WASHINGTON—Doubts over statements from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service have jolted the $2.8 trillion municipal-bond market, raising concern that in the worst case, some states or cities could lose federal interest-rate subsidies on more than $100 billion worth of Build America Bonds that have already been sold.
Any moves to claw back federal subsidies on those securities could further squeeze local governments already reeling from diminished tax revenues and increased demand for unemployment insurance and other social services.
Build America Bonds, or BABs, are taxable municipal bonds that give issuers a 35% subsidy on interest costs under the U.S. government's stimulus program. They were designed to encourage construction projects and create jobs. The program has been popular since its start in April 2009, accounting for roughly a third of municipal bonds that have been sold.
Ardmore Transit - Delayed
Lower Merion Township
June 6 , 2010
Philly.com
"The progress on this project has been frustrating, and I am becoming increasingly concerned that continuing delays will ultimately threaten the federal funds I have already worked to obtain," U.S. Rep. Jim Gerlach (R., Pa.) said in a statement Friday night.
LM Township Solicitor Makes.... What?
A review of the bills for the past two years submitted by Lower Merion Township’s solicitor, Gilbert High, shows he brings in a fee in the neighborhood of $300,000 a year.
Each month over the past two years, taxpayers in Lower Merion have spent an average of about $25,000 in fees to his firm, High Schwartz. That money also includes reimbursed expenses of more than $13,000 over two years that were itemized in the monthly bills.
Reed says Sue Township if you Want Open Meetings
April 23 , 2010
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
If the protest over Lower Merion commissioners' practice of holding closed “pre-board meetings” is ever going to move off of the Township Building's front lawn, there's only one place it can move to: the courtroom.
That was the message board President Bruce Reed carried outside to a group hefting signs at rush hour on Lancaster Avenue Wednesday evening.
Responding to Reed's suggestion that the group file suit, Romasco told him, “Even if [Rogers] was so wonderful as to [present a case] pro bono, taxpayers would be paying for this,” that is, for High to defend the township's position. Taxpayer money “should not be spent for you to defend a bad decision,” she objected.
For his part, Rogers said he could not bring the suit unless the board waived any objection to his representation. “I have a continuing fiduciary obligation to the township,” he said.
Township Increases Debt by 25% Today
April 21 , 2010
Cheryl Allison - Mainlinemedianews.com
The bond issue was to go to bids Wednesday morning, with results to be reported to the board and a vote to authorize the sale scheduled that night. (Check back with www.mainlinemedianews.com for an update.)
For 2010, a major item is funds for the renovation and expansion of Ludington Library, a project that has been approved and will go to construction shortly.
In 2011, funds for renovation of the Bala Cynwyd Library, next up in the renovation program for all six libraries, could also take a large share. Commissioners have approved moving forward on design of the project and obtaining an independent estimate of construction costs, but they have not signed off on it yet.
Parking Meters, Who Wants Parking Meters?
Lower Merion Township could benefit from Leasing parking rights to private firm
April 8 , 2010
NBCLosangeles.com
The city of Los Angeles parking meters gross about $46 million a year, Ciranna said, but the Department of Transportation will have to spend $25 million to $30 million to upgrade the equipment if the meters continue to be owned by the city. Selling or Leasing rights to city parking spots could unburden cash strapped cities by selling managment rights..
Chicago completed two similar deals over the last three years, netting more than $1.7 billion for the Windy City.
Fitch Recalibrates 38,000-Plus Ratings
April 6 , 2010
By Dan Seymor - The Bond Buyer
Fitch Ratings lifted its rating on more than 38,000 municipal bond issues yesterday under a systematic overhaul of the way it assigns grades to the credit quality of state and local governments.
The New York-based rating agency hoisted ratings on debt secured by 40 states, the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. Some of the states not included in the recalibration were already rated AAA, while others do not have general obligation debt rated by Fitch.
Township borrowing likely to hit $24 Million in 2010
This is not for the School District, it is for new spending for Lower Merion Township.
March 6, 2010
By David O'Connell- LMCRB
Lower Merion Township is considering raising its borrowing from the previous estimate of $15 million, to $24 Million in 2010. Township management finds the current rates favorable and would like to borrow now for 2010 and 2011 spending. One problem that has not been addressed by the Manager, or the Board of Commissioners, is that the 2011 Capital Improvements Program that this borrowing would fund, has not been approved. The CIP is not normally voted on by the Board until December of each year.
The new borrowing, $24,000,000.00, would raise township debt by approxomatly 23% to $124,000,000.00. New debt service would be required (spending from the General Fund) of $1.7 Million per year for 20 Years.
Read Complete Analysis from PFM Financial Advisor (PDF)
LM Just Below Highest Real Estate Tax Communities in North East
Feb. 9 , 2010
By Al Sitric - LMCRB
Lower Merion Township missed the honor of being one of the Top Five highest taxed communities in the north east. In a recent Forbes.com study, Rockland, NJ had an average total real estate taxes of $7,798. When all real estate taxes are considered, Lower Merion Township residents pay a median $7,376. The median tax paid is based on the last quarter median home sale price in Lower Merion of $490,000 (Median assessed value - $264,000). Average real estate taxes paid are actually higher, at $10,174.92, based on an average home assessed value of $365,000. Lower Merion real estate taxes include School, Township, and County taxes.
Municipal Costs Rise 1.1% For Latest 12 Months
Feb. 5 , 2010
According to American City & County, municipal costs have increased only 1.15 in the most recent twelve months. The Index was created by American City & County to demonstrate the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services.
Fountain Folly Continues
Jan. 28, 2010
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
Township Engineer explains a memo, a copy of which the Main Line Times requested, that a second option for a “less expensive, simpler fountain system” was considered but not recommended.
In the second option, the fountain would come with a submersible pump, which would remove the requirement for the underground structure. “Selection of Option 2 would have an estimated savings of $30,000 in fountain equipment plus an additional estimated $30,000 [reduction] of installation labor,” according to the memo.
Philadelphia Commercial Property Values Take Huge Hit
Jan. 27, 2010
By Maura Webber Sadovi- WSJ.com
The total volume of office deals done in the Philadelphia area that were valued at $5 million or more shrank to $99 million last year from $747 million in 2008, according to Real Capital Analytics, a New York real-estate research firm. 2000 Market St. Tower sells for $85 a square foot. The seller paid $115 a square foot in 2003.
$115,000 to Install a $20,000 Fountain
Jan. 6, 2010
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
The centerpiece of the new park — the fountain — is intended to serve as a landmark for motorists that they have arrived in Ardmore’s historic business district.
Discussion turned tense when Commissioner Jenny Brown asked when a plan for the park was presented to the board, and after Commissioner Lewis Gould called attention to the single $135,000 bid for plumbing of the fountain.
Gould also pointed out that plans called for using funds from a Montgomery County revitalization grant of $200,000, originally earmarked for creation of a town green at Lancaster Avenue’s Schauffele Plaza, for the new gateway park.
According to the county’s grant process, Gould said, a request to use the grant funds required a board resolution of support, a step he noted commissioners had not taken.
Apartment Rental Rates Decline
Jan. 6, 2010
By Nick Timiroas - WSJ.com
Apartment vacancies hit a 30-year high in the fourth quarter, and rents fell as landlords scrambled to retain existing tenants and attract new ones. Vacancies are tied to unemployment, because many would-be renters move in with family members or double up during a downturn.
Reed Removes Gelber as Finance Chair
Jan. 6, 2010
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
Commissioner Cheryl Gelber, who had chaired that committee for the past two years, including conducting budget discussions that have grown more contentious even as they have extended far beyond the year-end budget adoption process, no longer holds that position, according to a list handed out by re-elected board President Bruce Reed.
Chairmanship of the committee went to Commissioner Mark Taylor, who was also elected to serve as board vice president through 2011.
Municipal Bond Debt Issuance Near Record in 2009
Jan. 4, 2010
By Vincent Fernando - The Business Insider
Municipalities sold the second-heaviest slate of debt in the history of public finance in 2009, boosted by federal legislation that tapped into a reservoir of demand for state and local government credit in other markets.
Just a year after financial crisis cast a cautionary pall over the market, municipalities closed out 2009 having floated $409.13 billion in debt, according to Thomson Reuters.
Lower Merion Township approves Real Estate Tax Increase
Dec. 16 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
The budget, adopted on a 9-5 vote with the board’s Democratic majority in favor and Republican minority opposed, sets the new tax rate at 3.78 mills, an increase of .10 mills. A mill is $1 per $1,000 of assessed value.
The difference in viewpoint among commissioners was clear early on. “There are seven members of this board who have voted against every proposal,” noted Rogers in one of his last opportunities to comment. Rogers did not seek re-election this year; the Dec. 16 meeting was his last as a board member.
Why it was “so critical” to address what he sees as a “systemic spending problem,” Rogers said, is that in 2010 the real impact is not limited to a modest property-tax increase. By the board’s earlier decision to make trash operations fully self-supporting, residents will be seeing fee increases equivalent to another 6-percent tax hike, he noted. Also, to help close a budget gap, General Fund reserves will be drawn down by $1.7 million.
Muni Debt Set to Grow
Dec. 10 , 2009
By Andrew Edwardsr- WSJ
Higher debt levels and falling revenue have already led credit agencies to reduce ratings of California and other government entities. Moody's Investors Service cut Illinois's general obligation bond rating to "A2" from "A1" on Tuesday.
Debt is the Biggest Threat to a Triple - A Credit Rating - Moody's
Dec. 8 , 2009
By Joanna Slater- WSJ
Moody's Investors Service says the U.S. and U.K. must prove they can whittle down their ballooning deficits to avoid threats to their triple-A credit ratings.
In a report released on Tuesday, Moody's set the two countries apart from other top-rated sovereign borrowers, calling them merely "resilient" rather than "resistant," a label it applied to Canada, France and Germany, where public finances are in better shape.
More Older Workers Lose Employment
Dec. 8 , 2009
By Kelly Evans and Sarah Needleman - WSJ
The number of unemployed workers ages 55 to 64 has nearly tripled since the recession began, to about 1.6 million of the nation's 15.4 million unemployed as of November, according to the Labor Department. By comparison, the number of jobless workers of all ages has roughly doubled
Downgrading of Bond Insuers Takes Toll on Muni Bonds
Nov. 12 , 2009
Vanguard.com
Even though municipal bonds have performed very strongly this year, there's been a market-wide downgrading in credit ratings. As you can see here, as recently as 2003, AAA-rated bonds made up the lion's share of the market. Today, they're only a small fraction. The biggest gain has been in the AA bracket, which has more than doubled. All other segments have seen similar gains.
There are 2 factors at work. By far the most significant is the downgrading of bond insurers. When you invest in an insured bond, you take some comfort from knowing that if the bond issuer is unable to pay, the insurer will step in and provide timely payment on your investment. When a bond is insured, the bond takes on the credit rating of the insurer or the issuer, whichever is higher.
Residents Weigh in on Budget Proposal
Nov. 25 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
At the first of three public hearings scheduled on a proposed 2010 township budget, Lower Merion commissioners last week heard two opposing but equally compelling points of view.
Citizens spoke urgently and passionately about their fears of an increasing tax burden when they are already struggling in a still sluggish economy.
“Lower Merion Township is caught in a structural-deficit spiral because of increasing personnel costs,” which make up a large part of the budget, Romasco had remarked. In 2010, much of those costs will continue to climb because raises have already been negotiated in contracts with employee unions.
Romasco noted that Cleland has proposed lower, 2-percent raises for those employees not covered by contracts, but pointed out that, with the longevity increases the township continues to pay, “virtually no one” will receive only a 2-percent raise in 2010.
Commissioners Toss out Homestead Exemption Scheme
Nov. 11 , 2009
By Audrey Romasco
During the Finance Committee meeting of November 11, a motion was made to terminate any consideration for a Homestead exemption as proposed in The 2010 Budget. The motion was approved by eight of the twelve Commissioners in attendance. Four Commissioners, Delhiem, Gordon, Manos, and Rogan, voted no on the motion, stating that they would like to keep it available for discussion and consideration.
In the proposed 2010 Lower Merion budget message, Town Manager Cleland included the proposal to institute a Homestead Exemption on municipal property taxes. The following is a discussion of why the implementation of the Homestead Act as envisioned by TM Cleland was a bad idea.
2010 LM Budget - More Spending, More Borrowing, and Higher Taxes
Nov. 12 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison - MainLine Times
The fund balance, which stands at $10.5 million or about 21 percent of expenditures as 2009 ends, would be drawn down $1.6 million to $8.9 million, or 17 percent. By board policy, the fund balance is to be maintained at between 15 and 18 percent.
Cleland said he has not proposed reducing reserves to the lower level, perhaps reducing or avoiding a tax increase, because 17 percent was the goal for 2009. He said that is the “preliminary preference” a majority of commissioners have expressed for 2010.
He added that he sees a need for the township to go to market with a new money-bond issue of $15 million early in 2010 to fund capital projects. About half of that amount would go to the Ludington Library renovation project.
States Draw Plans for Bigger Budget Cuts
Nov. 12 , 2009
By Amy Merrick - WSJ
Indiana Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels said last week that revenue for the first four months of the fiscal year was 7.4%, or $309 million, below forecasts. He ordered state agencies to cut spending by 10%, on top of 5% cuts at the beginning of the current fiscal year.
A report Wednesday from the nonpartisan Pew Center on the States warned of "fiscal peril" in clusters of Midwestern and Western states, the result of widespread foreclosures, rising unemployment and poor financial management. The report cited Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, California, Oregon, Nevada and Arizona. Florida, New Jersey and Rhode Island also were in bad shape financially, the Pew report said.
Returning Private Sector Workers Face Steep Pay Cuts
Nov. 12 , 2009
By Ianthe Jeanne Dugan - WSJ
Wages and benefits paid by private companies increased just 1.2% -- adjusted for inflation -- for the year ended September 2009, the smallest change since the U.S. began measuring in 1975, the government reported last week. Some economists expect the figure to continue downward in coming months and to turn negative for the first time since such records have been kept. .
Lower Merion Board Approves Generous Police Contract
Oct. 29 , 2009
By Richard Ilgenfritz - MainLine Times
According to the terms of the agreement, the wages for officers will increase by 3.75 percent each year during the three-year life of the contract. For the officers covered under the contract, pay grades are broken down into several categories. This includes police officers in the grade D through A categories. There are also senior officers, probationary sergeants and sergeants. Lieutenants, captains and the superintendent do not fall under the FOP contract.
2010 Trash Fees to increase 10% to 41% for Most Residents
Oct. 29 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison- MainLine Times
Lower Merion residents now know what it will cost — and what their choices are — to take out the trash in 2010.
In a 9-5 vote Oct. 21, township commissioners set a new rate schedule for trash services.
The board’s Democratic majority favored the plan, saying that it strikes a balance among different goals: to make trash operations fully self-supporting, to require subscribers to pay for additional services and to encourage residents to generate less waste.
Easttown Reducing Spending in Slow Economy
Sept 23 , 2009
By Sam Strike - MainLineMedianews.com
Easttown Township’s cost-saving measures implemented early this year, including a 20-percent salary cut taken by most employees, is helping it to end 2009 without a deficit.
Still, the township’s general operating fund, one of its eight funds, may only have about $30,000 in it by year’s end and could have a deficit of as much as $1 million in 2010.
The end of this year is looking a bit brighter than it did in the first quarter of the year but, like many other area municipalities, some numbers are significantly off from what they were forecasted last December when the budget was crafted.
Poll Shows 70% Want Reduced Services and Lower Taxes
Aug. 26 , 2009
Rasmussen Reports
Seventy percent (70%) of likely voters now favor a government that offers fewer services and imposes lower taxes over one that provides more services with higher taxes, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
Just 19% would prefer a government that provides more services in exchange for higher taxes, down five points from July and the lowest level in over two years.
Public Sector Wage increases 2x private sector increases
Aug. 1 , 2009
By Conor Dougherty- Wall Street Journal
State and local government workers saw their compensation increase 3.2% in June versus 3.5% a year earlier. The increase in benefits actually accelerated, to 3.6% from 3.5% in June 2008.
The Labor Department's Employment Cost Index -- a broad measure of worker compensation ranging from health benefits and 401(k) contributions to hourly pay shows Goverment workers do much better.
For private-sector workers, the index was up 1.5%, the smallest annual increase since the government began tracking the data in 1980.
Privatizing Trash Collection Saves Money
July21 , 2009
By Carrie Porter- Wall Street Journal
The Gary Sanitation District contracted with giant Allied Waste Industries Inc., in October 2008. Soon, citizens began receiving a $12 monthly garbage bill, and 49 city sanitation workers lost their jobs. . "And for the total garbage costs, any kindergartener can tell you that it is cheaper to pay $5 million [annually under the new system] than to pay $9 million." said the Mayor.
Mr. Clay said people had been paying garbage "taxes" upward of $40 per month before the privatization as part of their city tax bill. Using a private hauler, citizens of Gary Indiana now pay $12 per month.
Private Sector Pay Raises Are the Smaillest In Decades
July21 , 2009
By Michael Sanserino- Wall Street Journal
Two surveys to be released Tuesday found employers have increased salaries this year by the smallest percentage in decades.
Human-resource consultants Watson Wyatt Worldwide Inc. and Hay Group estimate that median pay raises for 2009 ranged between 2% and 3%. The U.S. Labor Department says pay for the average worker increased 2.2% in the year ended March 31, down from 3.2% in the year-earlier 12-month period.
Using the Rout in Housing to Lower Taxes
July16 , 2009
By M.P. McQueen - Wall Street Journal
Homeowners who want to appeal their assessment in many cases can handle the process themselves, although it’s important to be prepared before going in front of an appeals board, tax experts say. People who want help can hire a property-tax consultant or attorney, but should expect to pay a fee, often 25% to 50% of the amount saved in the first year.
Spending Threatans 22% Tax Increase
July9 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
The Five-Year Financial Forecast that Chief Finance Officer Dean Dortone presented July 1 could spell some very real pain for Lower Merion taxpayers, especially in the near term.
According to the projections, for example, without adding new revenues — read, potential tax-rate increases in 2010 —- the current healthy General Fund reserve could vanish and dip significantly into the red in just two years.
Commissioners wrestle with late meetings, closed ad hoc meetings
April 9 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison
The main topic at a Lower Merion Board of Commissioners meeting April 15 was commissioners' meetings themselves.
Board members continued to wrestle with increasingly vocal requests for changes to open meetings of some ad hoc committees, in particular ones dealing with the township's budget and Capital Improvement Program.
Closed Meetings Protested in LM
April 9 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
Barred from a township budget meeting Wednesday afternoon, a group of Lower Merion residents took their protest to the street. To Lancaster Avenue, that is.
About 30 people gathered on the sidewalk in drizzling rain in front of the township building for about half an hour, holding signs that proclaimed “Secret Budget Meeting Being Held” and called for “Sunshine in Lower Merion.” The protest drew a few sympathetic honks from rush-hour commuters passing by.
It was the next step in a growing challenge to the board of commissioners’ practice of holding meetings of its Ad Hoc Budget Committee in private, and led to a tense few minutes inside a board meeting room.
Township Increases Debt by $7 million, Refi's $19 million
April 9 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
With bidding even more intense and interest rates more favorable than the township and its financial advisers anticipated, township manager Douglas Cleland said a savings of nearly $1.5 million in debt-service costs is expected.
Those savings, Cleland said, would be applied primarily to reduce the township’s debt-service expense in 2009 and 2010, which have been expected to be unusually challenging budget years.
It was the second time since last September, when the financial markets went into free fall, that Lower Merion has gone to market with a bond issue and found a bright spot in an otherwise gloomy economic climate. .
Ludington Library project - First to be Evaluated
April 9 , 2009
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
Hearing the most detailed presentation to date on the Ludington project last week, commissioners were enthusiastic about improvements that will bring the facility truly “into the 21st century.”
But even township manager Douglas Cleland acknowledged that there are several critical questions to answer before the board takes the next step and approves going to bid for construction.
Other factors needing a “positive evaluation,” Cleland said, are results of a capital campaign to raise significant private funds to support the project, the bidding climate and “the township’s fiscal condition.”
Another important decision that will need to be made: whether to keep the library open during renovation, requiring phasing of construction, or to close Ludington entirely for the duration of the project.
Open Meetings Supported by Diverse Group of Citizens
April 3 , 2009
LMCRB.org
On Wednesday, April 1st, Citizens from all areas of the township, different political groups, ages, incomes, and even citizens from Radnor Township, displayed their displeasure with the Township's policy of keeping certain budget related meetings closed to the public. Before the 5:00 pm meeting of the Ad-Hoc Budget Committee, Audrey Romasco of Bryn Mawr and others requested to be permitted to the meeting. Approxamatly 40 people attended the meeting only to be told they would not be allowed. Audrey moved the group the front of the Township building where they demonstrated for over an hour in heavy rain. For complete coverage, please visit www.mainlinetimes.com or saveardmorecoalition.org
Read Article and View Images with Sound
Citizens Protest Closed Meeting, LMT Shuts Door
April 1 , 2009
By Pete Bannan-Mainline Times
Lower Merion residents expressed their displeasure with the Lower Merion Ad Hoc Budget committee meeting Wednesday evening.
Read Article and View Images with Sound
Resolution Requesting LMT to Comply to PA Sunshine Act
March 31, 2009
At The March 24th meeting of the Gladwyne Civic Association, a motion was made to present a resolution to the Lower Merion Township Board of Commissioners, addressing the adherance to the PA Sunshine Act. The Resolution has been Drafted and approved by the GCA Directors. All Directors that voted, (28 of 30) voted in favor of the resolution.
LM Prepares to Add Millions to Debt, Refinance Older Debt
March 25 , 2009
Cheryl Allison - Mainline Media News
Township Manager requests Board pass resolution allowing additional borrowing. Lower Merion may need to consider a larger issue in 2010 for projects currently under consideration, as much as $17 million. But Cleland said that possibility will be re-examined as the time gets closer.
The resolution he offered the board was deliberately flexible. It calls for refinancing of up to $23 million in older bonds and $7 million in new money. It also leaves open the option for the township to conduct either a competitive or negotiated bid process.
LM Discusses Equipment Fund and Budget Surplus
March 11 , 2009
Township Manager Doug Cleland said Lower Merion for some 30 years has followed an operating procedure of setting aside money each year so that funding will be available when equipment must be replaced. The fund currently has about $9 million in cash equivelants that has been built up with surpluses from the operation of the fund over the period. Commissioner Brown noted that the fund had accrued surpluses in 19 of the last 20 years. Normal equipment purchases are paid for from revenue that the fund realizes by charghing the other funds (General, Solid Waste, etc.) for rent and replacement costs.
Despite declines in such areas as real estate transfer taxes and building permit fees, The Township realized a $400,000 budget surplus for 2008. Better complience to the business tax helped, along with significant cost savings above the forecasts. The budget surplus has been added to the 2009 General Fund as undesignated reserves.
(To see the budget presentation click here.)
Need for Municipalites to Borrow Should Decrease with Stimulus
March 11 , 2009
Shefali Anand - Wall Street Journal
Roughly $220 billion of the $787 billion stimulus money is expected to go to states and municipalities to help with a range of programs, including Medicaid, schools and transportation projects. Mass transit and infrastructure agencies are expected to issue less debt this year because a lot of their needs would be met by direct federal assistance, said analysts at Moody's Investors Service.
An additional way the stimulus should help muni prices: It boosts tax incentives to banks to buy bonds from small issuers. Before, banks could take a federal tax deduction only on issuers that floated a maximum $10 million in debt. Now, that cap has been raised to $30 million.
Municipalities Seek a Piece of the Stimulus Package
March 9, 2009
T.W. Farnam - Wall Street Journal
Some localities only recently got money that had been appropriated by Congress seven months ago for the purchase and rehabilitation of foreclosed housing. With the recently passed $787 billion economic stimulus, local officials are trying to learn how to get money out of federal coffers and back home quickly.
About 2,000 local officials are attending the National Association of Counties' annual legislative conference this week. An additional 250 are expected at the National League of Cities' annual congressional conference starting Saturday.
LM Commissioners keep Sunshine Out
Feb. 25th , 2009
Cheryl Allison - MainLine Times
The Lower Merion Board of Commissioners will keep its Ad Hoc Budget Committee, and it will keep that committee s meetings closed to the public. That was the answer to a citizen s open-meetings challenge in a lengthy discussion Wednesday night.
It was a split decision, one that broke with painful clarity along party lines.
Commissioner Jenny Brown and her four Republican colleagues voted in favor of her motion to maintain the committee, but to open its meetings to citizens and the press.
All eight of the Democratic commissioners who were present – Commissioner Brian Gordon was absent – voted in opposition, allowing the proposal to fail.
LM residents question closed budget sessions
Feb. 25th , 2009
Cheryl Allison - MainLine Times
The future of a budget committee of Lower Merion's board of commissioners is in question after a citizen challenged the township's practice of holding its meetings in private.
In interviews the chairman and another member of the Ad Hoc Budget Committee told the Main Line Times that it may be disbanded.
Leadership of LMT Board Closes Door on Transparency
Feb. 20th , 2009
On February 18th, the Ad-Hoc Budget committee was scheduled to meet. In violation of the PA Sunshine Act. No public notice was given and the public was not invited. David O'Connell of LMCRB accompanied Audrey. Romasco of Haverford and Cheryl Allison of the Main Line Times/Life as they presented themselves and asked for admittance to the meeting. As a result, the Commissioners caucused with the Township Solicitor and after two hours of inconclusive deliberation agreed not to hold the AHBC on that day, but to place the issue of open AHBC and AHCIP meetings on the agenda of the full Board’s March 4th meeting. LMCRB has requested the solicitor's written opinion.
Majority of BOC Passes on Budget Discussion at Finance Meeting
Feb. 13th , 2009
by Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
As the board begins work on a 2010 budget, Commissioner Lance Rogers introduced a resolution to reopen the hard-fought 2009 budget, with a goal of cutting at least $500,000 in authorized expenditures.
A majority of the board voted to table his motion for a week. The Democratic commissioners who voted to postpone discussion said they had not been given an opportunity to review the resolution.
Budget Discussion to Begin for 2010 - Or will it be About 2009?
Feb. 5th , 2009
by Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
Chairman Cheryl Gelber said this week that the special Finance Committee meeting scheduled for Feb. 11 at 5 p.m. is intended to take a general look at the budget process in what everyone agrees will be an extraordinarily difficult year. The meeting will be open to the public, she added, but members of the public will not participate or be permitted to make comments.
Monthly meetings of the board’s Ad Hoc Budget Committee, which begin the following week, will continue to be held in private session, Gelber said.
State and Local Government Spending Spree
Jan. 26, 2009
Lower Merion General Fund expenditures have increased 26% During the 2003 - 2007 time period. Although below the national average, this is still well above the rate of inflation during the same period.
Read More about State and local spending spree - WSJ
January 17, 2009
What's New?
Video: Joseph Henchman on State Budget Shortfalls (C-SPAN Washington Journal)
Joseph Henchman, Tax Counsel and Director of State Projects at the Tax Foundation, appeared on C-SPAN's Washington Journal to discuss the economic situation facing the states and how individual states are dealing with budgets and related tax issues.
Click here to watch the video.
Galveston, TX, Police and Fire Unions agree to 3% pay cut
Calls Grow to Cap Property Taxes
Higher Assessed Values Push Up Bills, Sparking Outcry as Market Prices Drop
January 5, 2009
By Jennifer Levitz- WSJ
Support for property-tax rollbacks is building from Arizona to New York, fueled by angry homeowners in some locales who are seeing rising tax bills despite plunging home prices.
New LM projects put under microscope by board
January 1, 2009
By Cheryl Allison- MainLine Times
In total, the library projects represent $24 million in new capital spending. The first project, the renovation and expansion of Ludington Library in Bryn Mawr, alone will cost more than $10 million, about evenly split between 2009 and 2010.
Real Estate Taxes up, Home Prices Down
December 30, 2008
By Sudeep Reddy- WSJ Real Estate
In Case-Shiller's index of 20 major metropolitan areas, home prices dropped 18% from the prior year, a record, and were down 2.2% from September. Phoenix and Las Vegas dropped 33% and 32%, respectively, from a year ago. Month-to-month decliners were led by Detroit, which fell 4.5%, and San Francisco, which dropped 4.2%.
LMT 2009 Budget Hearing Pushed Aside Due to Packed Agenda
Nov. 26, 2008
By Cheryl Allisoni - MainLine Times
On Nov. 19 - or actually, very early on Nov. 20 - the board was forced to scuttle a scheduled first public hearing on the township's 2009 Proposed Budget and new Capital Improvement Program because it would have started sometime after the witching hour.
By that time, some citizens who had waited several hours to put in their two cents had given up and gone home.
Commissioners Debate $24 Million Libraries Spending
Nov.19, 2008
By Cheryl Allison - MainLine Life
The "amazing numbers" in estimated costs for the projects - a total of $23.6 million - in today's economic climate were one cause for pause, however, some commissioners said. The relative lack of information on a breakdown of those costs was another.
Township Budget includes 2% tax increase
Nov.12, 2008
Cheryl Allison - MainLine Life
The item of most interest to many residents in a budget proposal for next year in Lower Merion will probably cause the least surprise.Township Manager Douglas Cleland's $53.9 million 2009 Proposed Budget, released over the weekend, includes a recommended 2-percent increase in the property tax rate, an anticipated amount that township commissioners have been debating throughout 2008.
Some Commissioners Request 0% Tax Increase
A Lower Merion Township budget proposal for 2009 isn't due out until next week, but it's already stirring controversy.
Oct. 21st , 2008
By Cheryl Allison - MainLine Life
At the close of an abbreviated meeting, Commissioner Jenny Brown mentioned that township manager Douglas Cleland had e-mailed each member of the board, seeking their final input before the budget document goes to the printer.
Specifically, she said, Cleland wanted direction whether to choose one option - a draw-down of township reserves to avoid a tax rate increase - or another. The second option: a 2-percent tax hike, the same as in 2008. Brown made a motion to "give direction to propose a budget that does not include a tax increase in 2009."
"The board has worked awfully hard since some of the disruptive discussions of a couple of months ago to see what could be achieved in a difficult budget year," Republican colleague Phil Rosenzweig said in support.
Future projects under scrutiny by board
LM Township can trim debt service by reducing its capital improvement projects in 2009
Oct. 21st , 2008
By Cheryl Allison - MainLine Times
If proof were needed that this is going to be a tough budget year in Lower Merion, it could be found inside the board room at the Township Building last Thursday night. For five hours, members of the board of commissioners combed through charts and lists of capital projects, in preparation for release of a Proposed 2009-2014 Capital Improvement Program by the end of the month.
For the first time, the board was holding a public workshop on its capital spending plan, permitting citizens to hear - though not to comment on - board discussion.
Township places $10 million Bond Issue through Negotiated Bid
Oct. 21st , 2008
By Cheryl Allison - MainLine Life
What Lower Merion ended up with was a deal including an interest rate over the 20-year life of the bonds of 4.83 percent. That's higher than the 3.97 percent it received in fierce bidding for a similar issue in 2007.
To put its 2008 rate in context, however, Winkler said it was 44 basis points - a basis point is one one-hundredth of a percent - below that day's Thompson Financial Municipal Market Data average for similar AAA bonds. For the bonds'maturities in the outer years, it was 73 basis points, or nearly three-quarters of a percent, below the average.
Next Victim of Turmoil May Be Your Salary
Oct. 14th, 2008
By David Leonhardt- New York Times
Income for the median household — the one in the dead middle of the income distribution — will probably be lower in 2010 than it was, amazingly enough, a full decade earlier. That hasn’t happened since the 1930s. Already, median pay today is slightly lower than it was in 2000, and by 2010, could end up more than 5 percent lower than its old peak.
State and Local Goverments cutting spending
Oct. 1st, 2008
Wall Street Jounal - By Tom Herman
Concerns about slower revenue growth have reverberated around the nation for well over a year. In this year's first quarter, state-tax revenues rose only 1.2% from the year earlier, leaving goverment finance officers looking for budgetary savings.
A tax Revolt is Quietly Brewing in Some States
August 20th , 2008
By Tom Herman - WSJ
While Americans are focusing on the presidential and congressional races, voters in Massachusetts and other states will decide the fate of dozens of state and local tax and spending issues
Status Quo Tax and Spend Forces Going to Battle
August 5, 2008
Lower Merion not alone in Status Quo opposition.
Explosive growth in Spending driven by Employee Compensation
July 31 , 2008
By Dennis Cauchon - USA Today
State and local governments are on track to spend more than $2 trillion for the first time in 2008 — about 13% of the nation's gross domestic product. A key factor driving higher spending: New employees and higher compensation.
Even California, despite years of budget woes, has continued to add employees. "It's the strangest thing. Government keeps hiring even when times are tough," says Jack Kyser, chief economist at the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp., a private business group
Lower Merion Financial Forecasts become clearer.
July 22 , 2008
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
Until last year, commissioners received a multi-year financial forecast as part of their budget deliberations, but the projections were not provided to the public. At the urging of Lower Merion Citizens for Responsible Budgeting and several commissioners, however, the board set a new policy calling for the forecast to be included in the budget document. An update on the projections was also to be provided mid-year.
Lower Merion Board Debates Budget Trimming .
July 10 , 2008
By Cheryl Allison - Mainline Times
Anyone who assumed that the second of two budget workshops Lower Merion commissioners had scheduled this summer would be as fact-intensive and low-key as the first one held in May would have been right about that first adjective, but in for a surprise on the second.
Municipal Bonds Caught In Collapse of ARS Market.
July 10, 2008
Massachusetts has filed the first lawsuit involving the collapse of the auction-rate securities market. The suit charges UBS with marketing the securities as “safe, liquid, money market instruments,” when the financial giant allegedly knew they were not. For more, visit: UBS Becomes Poster-Child For ARS Collapse
Eighteen States Plan To Cut Their Spending Below Current Levels.
June 20, 2008
By Amy Merrick- WSJ
State finances, having reached a "turning point" after several strong years, are heading toward what could become a prolonged slump, according to a report by the national associations of governors and state budget officers.
Some Public Pension Funds Feel Pinch of Market Turmoil
June 18, 2008
By Craig Karmin - WSJ
Stock-market turmoil wrought by the credit crunch is on track to push public pension-fund returns into negative territory for the first time in six years, prodding some weaker funds to take steps that could pain future employees.
Moody's to Delay Rating Plan
June 13, 2008
By Arron Lucchett i- WSJ
Municipal Bonds to be Comparable with Corporates - Bond-rating firm Moody's Investors Service is overhauling paln to update its municipal-bond ratings, which could make way for a significant number of upgrades for municipal bons.s
Lower Merion Township Plans Big for Capital Improvements
April 28 , 2008
Lower Merion's Capital Improvements for 2008 include $22 million for Ardmore, with $11.5 million in new spending
2008 CIP Funding Sources
Capital Projects |
Sanitary Sewer |
Total Capital |
|
2008 PROJECTS |
$55,585,000 |
$3,380,000 |
$58,965,000 |
SOURCE OF FUNDS: |
|||
Grants, reimbursements, other |
40,311,000 |
1,615,000 |
41,926,000 |
Existing Fund Balance |
4,567,508 |
1,000,000 |
5,567,508 |
2008 Bond Issue |
10,706,492 |
765,000 |
11,471,492 |
TOTAL |
$55,585,000 |
$3,380,000 |
$58,965,000 |
Read Complete township article at http://www.lowermerion.org/Index.aspx?page=492
Rising Property Taxes: What You Can Do to Lower Yours
April 25 , 2008
Economic Slowdown By CONOR DOUGHERTY
Grappling with rising expenses and struggling to make ends meet, local governments – who rely heavily on property taxes for funding — are raising property tax rates, provoking anger and concern among homeowners faced with deteriorating home prices, increasing inflation and a likely recession, writes Conor Dougherty in today’s Journal.
Read complete article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120900800448540861.html
New Jersey Police Take Heat For Escalating Salaries
February 31 , 2008
ADRIENNE LU and DAVE SHEINGOLD
Bergen Record
If a $100,000 salary is a benchmark for a comfortable living, then Fort Lee's Borough Hall is the place to work.
The number of municipal employees drawing six-figure paychecks in Fort Lee has jumped from 36 to 60 in the past two years, boosting workers' living standards while straining taxpayer wallets.
State, local government workers see pay gains
February 1, 2008
By Dennis Cauchon, USA TODAY State and local government workers are enjoying major gains in compensation, pushing the value of their average wages and benefits far ahead of private workers, a USA TODAY analysis of federal data shows.
The gap is widening every year, rising by an average $1.02 an hour last year and $2.45 an hour over the past three years. The better pay and benefits for public employees come as private-sector workers face stagnant wages and rising unemployment.
Read complete article at http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-02-01-civil-servants_N.htm
The (Tax) War Between the States
December 10, 2007
By Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore
Wall Street Journal - A record eight million Americans moved from one state to another last year. Where is everyone going and why? The answer has little to do with climate: California has arguably the nicest climate of any state in the nation---yet in this decade more Americans have left the Gloden State than entered it. Migration patterns instead reveal which states have the most dynamic and desirable economies, and which are"has-been states. The winers in this contest........
Read complete article at The Wall Street Journal Online
Board of Commissioners Acknowledges CRB Request for Documents
September 5, 2007
In the Finance Committee Meeting on Sept. 5, Commissioner Brown acknowledged that the Township had received a request from CRB to review the five-year financial projections which staff periodically provides to the Board of Commissioners. Without mentioning that Township Staff had initially denied the request, Commissioner Brown stated that the matter was one for the Board of Commissioners to decide as a matter of public policy and that a number of Commissioners had requested additional time to review the question. As a result, the matter has been put on the
public agenda for September 19, 2007. The Finance Committee is currently scheduled to meet shortly before 8:00 pm. on September 19.