New Hope Borough Council has approved a budget for 2023 that continues to hold the line on taxes while maintaining current service levels. The budget, adopted on Dec. 21, maintains taxes at current millage rates for the eighth consecutive year.
“Holding the line on taxes is critically important in the coming year, for residents and businesses alike,” said Council President Connie Gering. “We are all feeling the pressure from inflation and higher interest rates, and the Borough is determined to do everything we can to bring some stability to the local economic picture. For 2023, that means no tax increase.”
The budget for the coming year keeps police, public works and administrative services at current levels. Council voted earlier in the year to increase its support for the Free Library of New Hope and Solebury.
“All of our staff deserve a great deal of credit for identifying areas where we can save by keeping costs down,” said Borough Manager Peter Gray. “Throughout the year we have provided greater transparency on how New Hope spends its money, at public meetings and on the Borough website, and everyone who works here has been focused on watching costs.”
More than half of the budget goes to the Borough’s General Fund, which pays for core municipal functions, including policing and road maintenance. Separate funds provide for fire, EMS, street lighting, the library, and debt service payments for previously issued municipal bonds.
New Hope residents pay less property tax to the Borough than they pay to other taxing authorities. For every dollar a resident pays in Real Estate taxes, 9 cents goes to New Hope Borough, 17 cents to Bucks County, and the remaining 74 cents to the New Hope Solebury School District.