Beach Haven council adopts 2025 budget, holds tax rate steady

The Beach Haven Borough Council on May 12 unanimously adopted the 2025 municipal budget after a short presentation by the municipal clerk.

Clerk (transcript_label S5) told the council the total appropriations, including reserves, are $16,208,149.62, an overall increase of 5% ($772,287.84) over 2024. The amount to be raised by taxation is $9,119,820.90, and the council held the municipal tax rate steady at 0.413 with no increase from the prior year. The clerk also reported a library levy of $1,354,843.93 and said insurance and group health costs rose, with liability insurance up 22.22% and group health insurance up 17.36%.

The clerk said the budget uses an additional $691,000 in surplus to balance the plan; the transcript notes that surplus funding represented “27%” in the reading. Water utility appropriations were reported at $2,021,317.43 (up by $68,817.43, attributed to debt service) and sewer utility appropriations at $1,725,000 (an increase also due to debt service).

Committee member (transcript_label S2) moved to adopt the budget; Committee member (transcript_label S1) seconded. The clerk read the adoption resolution and certified the budget as adopted by the governing body on 05/12/2025. The roll call recorded unanimous approval.

Why this matters: Adopting the budget finalizes how the borough will fund municipal services, utilities and the library for the coming year and confirms there will be no municipal tax rate increase despite rising costs cited by the clerk.

What’s next: The clerk certified the adoption and noted the budget and any amendments had been previously approved by the director of local government services. No public comment was offered during the budget hearing.