Frelinghuysen Passed Budget Lower Than Last Year

April 24, 2023

The Frelinghuysen Township Committee adopted a municipal budget of $905,507 at its April
meeting, a decrease of about $55,000 over 2022.

“We felt like this was a really good budget,” Mayor Keith Ramos said. “With all things
considered, we actually lowered our appropriations.”

Ramos said the budget reflects a drop in revenue from construction permits. The fees for
permits had been increased within the past month.

“With the rate of inflation and rising costs, I think this was a pretty fiscally sound and
responsible budget,” Ramos said. “I’m pretty proud of the budget we put together this year.”

Ramos was asked during the public hearing about a $20,000 appropriation for the fire
department, which was founded last year.

The mayor said that the overall appropriations for fire protection services remains at last year’s level, and that the funds for the Frelinghuysen department were covered by lower payments to neighboring towns for fire services.

“We were paying $105,000 for that emergency service” from nearby towns, Ramos said. “We now pay $85,000 for it and the other $20,000 we’ve allocated towards our own fire
department.”

Ramos added that he payments to the towns that provide fire coverage—Green, Blairstown
and Hope—were likely to increase this year as high as $150,000.

“It’s for the department for when they need their turn out gear or if they need building improvements,” Ramos said. “It’s the money that we have to allocate for a fire department, the same amount of money that you would have allocated regardless. That’s what we were paying for fire coverage and we’re still paying the same thing.”

Ramos defended the decision to form the town’s fire department last year, saying the added level of safety benefits the community.

“We’re paying $105,000 for that emergency service,” Ramos said. “We now pay 85. We took the other $20,000 and allocated for our fire department, which is adding an emergency service to the community and is going to raise the value of our town.”

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer

Contributing Writer

Joe brings decades of journalism experience to the Ridge View Echo, covering everything from local school boards to the U.S. Supreme Court. A former National Law Journal editor and Columbia Law School press officer, he now enjoys telling community stories in Blairstown, where he lives with his wife, Rose, and their two dachshunds.