This month, when Mount Laurel residents receive their third quarter property tax bill, they may see a new tax line for Public Library Tax.
Is this a new tax? Absolutely not!
For towns with municipal or joint libraries, the minimum funding requirement of 1/3 mill library operations tax levy has been in effect since 1884. Until this year, appropriations for these types of libraries were included within the municipal tax rate.
This was different for towns within a county library system, which have always had a separate library tax to support library operations.
To ensure fiscal parity among municipalities that support a local or joint library and those that support a county library, on March 21, 2011, Governor Chris Christie enacted P.L. 2011, c. 38 (S‐2068). The law provides a dedicated line item on the property tax bill for the minimum funding to municipal and joint free public libraries.
Mount Laurel Library wants you to know that this does not result in any increased taxes, but only changes the way your tax bill looks. This change reduces the municipal tax levy and rate, and creates a new line item on the tax bill for library purposes. Now all state residents that support a public library will clearly see the cost of the library on their property tax bills.
This new law simply provides a dedicated line item on the property tax bill to collect this minimum funding. It provides for more transparency in library funding and creates equity for municipalities supporting county, municipal and joint libraries as all will be displayed similarly on the tax bill.
It does not result in any increased taxes, nor does it change existing financial, operational, personnel, or other relationships between a municipality and the library.
More information on this new law can be found at http://njla.org/statements/municipaltax_faq.pdf
