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Vol. LXIV, No. 3
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Wednesday, January 20, 2010
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Vol. LXIV, No. 3
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Wednesday, January 20, 2010
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DAVID E. COHEN
President
Princeton Community Democratic Organization
BERNARD P. MILLER
Mayor, Princeton Township
MILDRED T. TROTMAN
Mayor, Princeton Borough
To the Editor:
I am writing on behalf of myself and the Princeton Community Democratic Organization in response to last week’s coverage of the resolution passed by Township Committee encouraging a new dialogue with the University on their financial contribution to the community.
Last year a formal resolution was approved at a general membership meeting of the PCDO supporting this type of dialogue, and I would like to share some of the considerations which went into the membership’s deliberations.
There were many points made during the presentation by the ad hoc Committee on Local Issues, but the most compelling one is that tax exempt status is a subsidy granted by the public to non-profit institutions. When asking the University to make more payments in lieu of taxes, the community is not asking Princeton for a gift, we are asking them to forego the financial aid they have been receiving from the community for all these years. In doing so, we are just adopting the University’s own policy toward financial aid, which they award to students based on need, not on merit.
Let’s consider what percentage of the University’s income gets spent annually. If their operating budget were equal to their typical income from all sources — tuition and fees as well as return on investments — then one might entertain the notion that they need our help, but as presented to the PCDO, the University’s entire operating budget is about $900 million, and their income on endowment alone (prior to the recession) was about $3 billion annually. They may say their wealth is going to a socially beneficial goal — education — but really only a fraction is going to education and too much is going right back into the endowment. They are hoarding their assets like so many other wealthy charitable institutions these days, while we as a community are losing diversity because only the wealthy can afford the high property values and property taxes that result from the University’s presence here. Do we want our town to be unaffordable to our teachers, police, firefighters, and other valued members of the community, just so the University can sock away another $30 million a year into their endowment?
Once you realize that the University’s tax-exempt status is a public subsidy, all the other pieces fall inexorably into place.
DAVID E. COHEN
President
Princeton Community Democratic Organization
Editor’s Note: The following is an Open Letter to the residents of Princeton Borough and Princeton Township.
To the Editor:
Princeton Borough and Princeton Township have received approval from the Local Finance Board to establish a commission to study the feasibility of additional shared services or consolidation of the two municipalities. The services to be studied for possible sharing include police and public works. It is planned that the Study Commission will prepare the statement of work for the tasks to be performed by the independent consultant (or consultants), select the consultant (or consultants), manage the studies, consider and evaluate public input, and integrate the results into a final report to Princeton Borough Council, Princeton Township Committee, and the citizens of our community.
Although municipal consolidation has been studied in the past, this study will operate under the framework of Local Option Municipal Consolidation statute, passed by the New Jersey State Legislature in 2007, that provides for a more flexible approach and options to service sharing or municipal consolidation than was available in earlier years under the Municipal Consolidation Act.
The Study Commission will consist of four elected representatives, two from Princeton Borough Council and two from Princeton Township Committee, and three citizen commissioners from each municipality. The tentative time frame for the work of the Study Commission is for the Commission to be in place by March 1, 2010, the contractor (or contractors) to be selected by July 1, 2010, the studies to be completed by December 31, 2010, and a report from the Commission to be delivered to the two governing bodies by March 31, 2011.
The Mayor and the Council of the Borough of Princeton will select and appoint the three volunteer citizen representatives from the Borough, and the Mayor and the Township Committee will select and appoint the three volunteer citizen commissioners from Princeton Township.
It is anticipated that the Commission will meet frequently during the time from about March 1, 2010 to the completion of the final report on or about March 31, 2011. Interested Princeton Borough residents should submit a statement of their interest and qualifications to the Clerk, Princeton Borough, 1 Monument Drive, Princeton 08540. Interested Princeton Township residents should submit a statement of their interest and qualifications to the Clerk, Princeton Township, 400 Witherspoon Street, Princeton 08540. The deadline for the receipt of statements of interest and qualifications is January 29, 2010.
We believe that service on the Study Commission provides a unique opportunity for the citizens of both municipalities to play an important role in determining the future of the Princeton community. We encourage you to offer to volunteer to serve.
BERNARD P. MILLER
Mayor, Princeton Township
MILDRED T. TROTMAN
Mayor, Princeton Borough