Week in Review: Budget Battles Heating Up

Budget crafting is heating up for municipalities and schools after the governor introduced his state budget early this week all the while state legislators duke it out over proposed federal cuts.

It may not be ideal, but the Ridgewood schools got an unexpected boost in state aid and the village will see the familiar figure it saw last year. Check out our seven top stories from the week:

1) The domino, of course, all starts with the governor. In his televised speech on Tuesday, the he said would cut spending, fix the pension system and give a needed boost to schools. All in all, spending would be reduced by 2.6 percent over that of last year, the governor says. Still, with a Democratic-controlled legislature that has reportedly far less interest in playing ball with Christie than it did last year, this budget may not end as it began.

2) Ridgewood school officials were both befuddled and angry last year when they heard the district's state categorical aid would be entirely slashed but things are looking brighter in 2011, as Ridgewood could be , which could go a long way in closing a $650,000 budget gap. Still, the $850,000 is a far cry from previous figures of around $3 million.

3) Something is better than nothing and village officials can at least be secure in knowing their (about $1.8 million) as it crafts its upcoming budget. The village saw over 30 workers drop from the payroll last year as it tried to close its budget gap. The next upcoming council meetings will feature budget presentations.

4) For a minute, it looked as if the village council's agreement on parking might unravel nearly as quickly as it was struck Wednesday night after Village Manager Ken Gabbert told the council . The council, however, again agreed to move forward with the plan brokered in January although no one pretends the new proposal is a total solution to a problem that's plagued the village for nearly a century.

5) We had an enlightening  earlier this week. Capetola spoke of the current impact of the 2010-2011 budget cuts, how stronger ties with the Ridgewood Public Library is helping minimize the impact of cuts but also concern over what possible future cuts could do to a village with a library culture.

6) Ridgewood Water is heading back to the drawing board in its ongoing effort to convert its ineffective meter-reading technology after the to ratepayers. If the utility wants its radio-based meters to accurately bill its customers, it'll need to do so without bonding. Perhaps, Deputy Mayor Tom Riche suggested, it could sell off real estate to come up with the money.

7) Republican Congressman Scott Garrett, who represents the 5th Congressional District, in the hotly-debated H.R. 1 "Continuing Resolution," a move Democratic Senator Frank Lautenberg said will have an adverse effect on commuters in North Jersey. Garrett said he's looking to clean up some of the waste in government and took aim at "ObamaCare," but Lautenberg said locally, the $50 million slated for Department of Transportation that would be pulled will mean commuters on Rt. 17 and other arteries in North Jersey will continue to suffer. The bill now moves to the Senate after House Republicans pushed the measure through.