Sussex Borough praised for compliance

SUSSEX BOROUGH — The Sussex Borough Council met on Tuesday night to take care of some unfinished business, and to tie up some loose ends before heading into the summer.
During the summer months of July and August, the council operates on a modified schedule, meeting only once a month, instead of twice.
Municipal Auditor Thomas Ferry began the meeting by giving an official summary of the 2016 Audit Report of Sussex Borough.
Ferry, who also worked on the Sussex budget, once again praised the high tax-compliance rate of the Borough.
”When you have a great tax-collection rate, a lot of great things happen, and this is one of them,” Ferry said. “The fund-balance goes up.”
The fund balance is basically the difference between assets and liabilities the borough has.
In 2016, the borough had an excess revenue over expenditures of $240,000, of which $103,000 was used to balance the budget, leaving a profit of about $137,000.
When added to the already existing monies in the borough’s fund balance of around $274,000, the borough is in the black to the tune of approximately $412,000.
“That’s a great thing,” Ferry said. “And a lot of this is driven by a great tax-collection rate.”
In 2016, the borough had a tax-collection rate of 97.63 percent. The borough has maintained a high tax collection rate of above 95% for at least the last five years.
In other news:
The council received notice advising the Borough of Sussex that they have been selected to receive funding from the New Jersey Department of Transportation municipal aid program for improvements to Linden Street, in the amount of $60,000.
The Borough was also rewarded a clean communities grant of $4,735.56.
The Council also voted unanimously to approve the renewal of five liquor licenses, including licenses for the Fountain Square Inn, Patricks Wine Barn on Hamburg Avenue, and the Sussex Inn.
The next Sussex Borough meeting will be July 18.