Friends, Neighbors and Fellow Upper Merion Area Residents:
Last night the Board of Supervisors passed the 2018 Budget.
At the Monument in Valley Forge
The Upper Merion Township budget is actually three budgets: the operating budget, the capital budget and the sewer budget. The approximately $39.4 million operating budget is by far the biggest and it funds the day to day operations of the township. The largest source of revenue in our operating budget are Act 511 taxes – that’s the revenue we derive from businesses. $16.7 million in projected revenue or almost 42.5% of our operating budget comes from Act 511 taxes. On top of that we also expect to receive $3.22 million from commercial real estate taxes. These revenue streams are two of the many reasons why a prosperous business community benefits you. Other important sources of revenue includes the casino, funds from various fees and permits, grants, and real estate transactions. Commercial real estate transactions have provided huge boons to both the township and Upper Merion Area School District. When the King of Prussia Town Center sold earlier this year for $183 million the township and the school district each received $915,000.
Another source of revenue for Upper Merion Township is the one you’re probably most familiar with – residential real estate taxes. This Board of Supervisors is very proud that 2018 will be a modern era record 8th consecutive year without a tax hike. During this period we have consistently achieved budget surpluses including a $1.22 million surplus in 2016 and a $1.42 million surplus in 2015. By contrast in the 25 years prior to 2011 the township raised your real estate taxes 10 times including a 25% increase in 2005. It’s a simple equation: the stronger our local economy, the greater the likelihood that we can produce budget surpluses and not raise taxes while simultaneously providing a high level of services and economic opportunities for our residents.
Budgets are inherently about priorities and a major priority of this Board of Supervisors is to invest in our community. The 2018 budget accomplishes this goal. We are allocating a substantial amount of funds to build the Crow Creek Trail which will connect the area from the Upper Merion Middle and High School to Volpi Common through the woods to the Upper Merion Community Center. Additionally seven parks will receive playground and/or court improvements and we will also build a dog park. But our infrastructure investments aren’t just limited to parks and recreation. The township will hire a full time fire and EMS chief and 3 full time fire fighters as well as make a variety of other upgrades in public works, the police department and elsewhere.
Much of this article is very similar to my articles about the 2015, 2016 and 2017 budgets. That’s because passing an economically responsible budget is always one of our most important responsibilities. It’s fundamentally a team effort involving the Board of Supervisors, township management and staff. Upper Merion Township is known throughout the region for our economic heft and forward thinking and we will continue to enhance this reputation though we have significant challenges ahead. Additionally we must ensure that our community of opportunity is a community of opportunity for all of our residents. The affordable public pool and community center, the $10 internal minimum wage, the anti-discrimination ordinance and the BCA scholarship program are just some of the actions we’ve taken to turn this mantra into a reality. That being said we always need to make the benefits our community offers more accessible for all of our residents. Still, I’m proud to be part of a board that’s made key investments, accrued large budget surpluses, never raised taxes, dramatically reduced litigation, maintained our AAA bond rating and recently was lauded by Moody’s for our economic stewardship.
If you’d like to review the 2018 budgets or the township manager’s budget presentation, you can check it out by clicking this link.
Sincerely,
Greg
