Hillsboro delays 2026 budget adoption after state review; seniors lose direct club grants, sparking public outcry

Hillsboro Township Committee on May 26 deferred final adoption of its 2026 municipal budget after the state assigned a reviewer late last week and returned comments that the governing body said require changes before certification.

The delay followed a heated public hearing in which senior-club leaders and residents protested the removal of two longstanding $15,500 annual direct appropriations. A committee statement read into the record attributed the change to a legal opinion and fiscal constraints: the township’s CFO had flagged a provision of the state constitution that limits direct appropriations of municipal funds to private societies. Officials said the township can still support senior programs through municipal departments but cannot simply write checks to external nonprofit clubs.

The budget debate unfolded amid grim numbers. A statement read for Committeewoman Jill Gomez said the township’s surplus has fallen from more than $6 million in 2021 to under $3 million at the end of 2025, and that rising health, pension and energy costs had placed “strong headwinds” on municipal finances. Officials described personnel reductions, cuts to operating budgets and storm-recovery expenses that have contributed to the shortfall and said they were unwilling to adopt a budget tonight without state certification.

Residents voiced frustration and anxiety about the cuts. Jean Reinhardt, a longtime senior-club member, said she and her group were “surprised and almost shocked to see that the budget was changed to zero this year” and urged the township to restore funding or find alternatives. Several other seniors told the committee they rely on subsidized programs, trips and lunches that the clubs arrange and warned that the loss of municipal support would force them to raise dues, reduce programming or curtail services.

Township officials pledged to pursue alternatives. Committee members said they will work with the social services department and committee liaisons to identify grants, in-kind donations and programmatic support to help sustain senior offerings. “We will look everywhere,” one liaison said on the record, and staff offered to post the cited constitutional guidance and follow up with the clubs on allowable approaches.

Because the budget vote was postponed, the committee adopted emergency temporary appropriations to fund payroll and essential services until the budget is certified. The body amended the emergency package to remove $3,200 budgeted for township committee salaries for June and approved the amended resolution by roll call, allowing departments to pay bills while officials continue to refine the budget and address state comments.

Next steps: the committee said it will continue the public hearing and revisit the budget at a future meeting (members indicated June 9 and a June 23 meeting on the calendar), after staff and finance liaisons respond to the state review and explore options to restore or replace senior programming support.