Rahway introduces municipal budget as residents press council on developer tax deals and one-time revenue

The Rahway City Council introduced its municipal budget July 6 and scheduled a public hearing and final adoption for the Aug. 3 meeting after receiving public criticism about transparency and developer tax abatements.

Administrator Matt Pukovich told the council the administration had secured $2,175,000 in state legislative aid that will be applied to the budget and estimated the proposal would amount to roughly a 2.3% tax increase — about $84 for the average household. "We're happy to introduce it this evening," Pukovich said, adding the city will follow statutory notice and hearing requirements before adoption.

Residents pressed elected officials during the hearing-of-citizens portion. "This budget has a loophole, and this year, you let that loophole grow by 25%...While our tax bills go up, the part of the budget you control outside the normal rules is growing 4 times faster than the law allows," said Hope Moran, a 6th Ward resident and independent mayoral candidate, who also said she believed the city would rely on a "one-time cash grab" — a proposed $1.5 million cell-tower sale — to balance this year.

Longtime public commentator Alan Levy raised broader transparency and governance concerns, alleging the city's approach to utilities and consultant relationships deserved closer scrutiny. "You are all members of the Rahway Democratic Committee...If you had truly felt that this was a violation of democracy and ballot access, you could have said so," Levy told the council, criticizing both campaign committee activity and the pace of budget disclosure.

Council officials responded with procedural clarifications. Mr. Lindolfi said the July 6 session was an introduction only and that the budget would be published "within 48 hours" and be the subject of a public hearing no less than 28 days later. "Tonight's not the adoption. It's merely the introduction," he said, and he described some items listed in the agenda as reissuances or rollovers of existing short-term notes rather than new permanent debt.

City Engineer Dan Lee provided a separate operational update, saying a contractor paused work on the Irving Street bridge after finding structural issues at a nearby building; the contractor plans to return Wednesday, weather permitting.

What happens next: the council introduced the municipal budget and will publish the required documents before the August public hearing and final adoption. Residents who raised concerns asked the council to publish full budget documents ahead of any vote and to explain pilot/PILOT tax deals and one-time revenue projections in greater detail.