MAYOR'S NEWSLINE

March 2004

IMPORTANT EVENTS - PAST AND FUTURE
And staff contacts for more information
Also consult the calendar
For Seminar details, contact David Harkness ext. 18.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Scholarship Deadlines Seeking Mayoral Conference Suggestions Support Constitutional Convention Federal Spending Plan For 2005 2004 Mayors' Hall Of Fame Nominations

FROM THE PRESIDENT
By Jo-Anne Schubert, Mayor, South Bound Brook

The Governor's 2005 fiscal year budget address was presented to the State Legislature on Tuesday, February 24. Below is a brief summary of the presentation and how municipalities will be impacted by state proposals for FY 2005.

For the first time in his administration, the Governor has been able to boost municipal property tax relief funding. Municipal aid has been increased by 32 million dollars for a total of 1.8 billion dollars. The Energy Tax Receipts Property Tax Relief Fund will distribute 25 million dollars more than last year. Regional Efficiency Development Incentive funding will be doubled to 4.2 million dollars. The new Taxpayer Hero Grant program will distribute 5 million dollars to municipalities that "hold the line" on spending. The Governor also proposes a 3 percent increase in state aid to every school district.

The Governor's repeated remarks on tax fairness and reform are particularly welcome by us local leaders. His leadership could be enough to convince both houses to pass A-1786/S-263 in time to get the Constitutional Convention question on November's ballot. Now is the time to work together to get this done. Please take the time to lobby your State Representatives on the importance of approving this key legislation. Make that phone call, pass a resolution, send a letter. This may be our last best chance to give the power of tax reform back to the people who pay property taxes in our great state. For more information on the budget address go to www.nj.gov/budget2004/.

EXECUTIVE BOARD

SEEKING MAYORAL CONFERENCE SUGGESTIONS
-Contact Bill Dressel ext. 22
bdressel@njslom.com, or fax 609-695-0151

Your League staff will shortly begin preparing the schedule of educational sessions for the 89th Annual League Conference. To make sure this schedule accurately reflects your needs, we need your input. Please fax or e-mail your suggested topics and speakers so we may coordinate your ideas into an informative and thought provoking conference. Most conference sessions developed are based on the input and responses from mayors and elected officials.

MAYORS' HALL OF FAME NOMINATIONS
-Contact Michael Darcy ext. 16 or mdarcy@njslom.com

Nomination forms for the 2004 Mayors' Hall of Fame were recently mailed to all Mayors. This special recognition is given to Mayors who have served at least 10 years for the silver level, or 20 years for the gold level. Please review the full list of current Hall of Fame Mayors at the League web site. If any mayors are missing that should be included, please nominate them on the official 2004 Mayors' Hall of Fame nomination form.

SUPPORT TAX REFORM CONVENTION
-Contact www.njslom.com

Join the League's ongoing effort to push for a Constitutional Convention for Property Tax Reform. Legislation sponsored by Senator John Adler and Assembly Majority Leader Joe Roberts can carry the promise of property tax reform to fulfillment. Urge your local elected officials to pass a Resolution in support of A-1786/S-263. A sample Resolution and other important updates on this issue can be found at www.njslom.com, under the link "Constitutional Convention."

NJ DEP SPONSORED GIS CONFERENCE
-Contact http://quantifactus.wcupa.edu/macurisa

The Mid-Atlantic Chapter of Urban and Regional Information Systems Association will hold its 2004 Geographic Information Systems conference on March 17 and 18 at Rutgers University Busch Campus. Contact the above web site for additional information, conference fees and registration forms.

NJAC SPRING CONFERENCE
-Contact www.njac.org

The NJ Association of Counties conference is April 5, 2004 in Trenton. Contact NJAC for more details.

FUTURE MUNICIPAL LEADERS SCHOLARSHIP DEADLINE
-Contact: Michael Darcy ext. 16 or mdarcy@njslom.com

In January, all mayors received information on the scholarship competition. At this time, you should have your judging panel in place and some entries from constituent high school students. By March 15, you should have all your entries ready to be judged. And by April 1, you should be submitting your local winner to the League office along with a complete list of your local entries. Thank you for making this important opportunity possible for your high school juniors and seniors.

FEDERAL PROPOSED BUDGET FOR 2005
-Contact Bill Dressel ext. 22 or bdressel@njslom.com

Below is a brief analysis of the Bush Administration's proposed budget for 2005 provided by the National League of Cities. According to the available data, local government should expect cuts in the following areas:

Community Oriented Policing Services funding would be cut from $756 million in 2004 to $44 million under the proposed budget;

Local Law Enforcement grants would decline by 40 percent and block grant programs would be eliminated;

Housing and community development funding would be cut by $316 million in Community Development Block Grants and $149 million in the HOPE VI program.

Proposed- increases in the budget include education funding- $1 billion for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and $1 Billion for the No Child Left Behind Act. For more information, contact the League office.

RUTGERS REMOTE SENSING WORKSHOP
-Contact http://www.crssa.rutgers.edu/rs04/

The Rutgers University Center for Remote Sensing and Spatial Analysis will be hosting a Remote Sensing workshop on May 14, 2004. The goal of the workshop is to make public sector officials aware of available imagery technologies for practical government applications. Municipal officials are encouraged to attend. Contact Rutgers for more details.