Mayor W. Reed Gusciora announced that the City of Trenton will host a public webinar on Zoom today, June 9, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. to discuss the City’s transition from a fiscal-year to a calendar-year budget cycle.
The virtual meeting will include an introduction by Mayor Gusciora, followed by a brief presentation by Chief of Staff Arch Liston, Business Administrator Adam Cruz, Assistant Business Administrator Colin Cherry, and the rest of the Trenton budget team. The presentation will be followed by a brief Q & A discussion to address any comments or concerns.
Those interested in attending the webinar can do so by visiting this link at 4:00 p.m. The webinar will be recorded so residents who cannot attend the meeting will still have access to the discussion. No registration is required beforehand.
“The City of Trenton is one of only a handful of municipalities in New Jersey that still operate on a fiscal-year budget,” said Mayor Gusciora. “It’s time to make the sensible transition to a calendar year-budget. However, this is a big change, and we want concerned residents to have every opportunity to learn more about the fiscal impact of this transition.”
Ordinance 21-012 will move the City’s budget from a fiscal year cycle to a calendar year cycle starting Jan. 1, 2022. If passed by City Council, Trenton will begin a one-time six-month transition period in July 2021 before shifting to a 12-month calendar at the start of 2022. The move will streamline the budget process and align Trenton with how most municipalities and counties in the state operate. Trenton is one of just seven municipalities in the entire state that still operate under a fiscal year budget calendar. Paterson made a similar conversion last year.
During the proposed 18-month budget transition from July 2021 through December 2022, Trenton would need to make only one pension payment in April 2022. However, the City would still get two State aid payments in November 2021 and November 2022, resulting in millions of dollars in surplus.
The N.J. Department of Community Affairs (DCA) has supported the transition and made a presentation outlining the benefits of the calendar year budget before City Council on May 25, 2021. Afterwards, City Council voted to advance Ordinance 21-012 to the related public hearing and second reading on June 10, 2021.
