Tonight, Wednesday March 3, Verona’s municipal government will begin holding presentations on different aspects of its annual budget for the Town Council and the public.
The first night will include some of the budgets most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic–the Recreation Department, Verona Pool and Community Center–as well as the Department of Public Works, Buildings & Grounds, Engineering and Administration, if there is time. The rest of the proposed budgets will be next Wednesday, March 10.
The COVID-19 pandemic cut into Verona’s revenues, with those at the Recreation Department down by 75% at one point. The town sharply lowered expenses, in part by furloughing part-time employees, and did not have to declare a budget emergency. The proposed budget released by Gov. Phil Murphy last week indicated that the pandemic had not hurt state finances as much as had been feared, but there is no indication yet of what state aid might be coming to Verona.
In recent years, the Town Council has worked to decrease Verona’s reliance on its capital account to cover budget deficits and fund current-year operations. This gap has been narrowed substantially by reducing police overtime, overall attrition in employee headcount, sharing services with other towns and managing municipal healthcare costs. All of Verona’s budgets back to 2009 have been posted here.
Tonight’s meeting will be held online and begin at 6:30 p.m. To attend Via the internet, use this Zoom link or call 1(312)626-6799 or 1(646)558-8656 and use the Zoom Meeting ID 952-6266-2770. When prompted for a participant ID, press #.
