Hillsdale School Taxes Will Rise $228 For Average Homeowner

The average Hillsdale homeowner will see a combined increase of $228 for the K-8 and regional school districts next year.

The average Hillsdale home was assessed at $549,000 before the revaluation and $469,400 now.

Both the Hillsdale and Pascack Valley Regional Boards of Education approved their respective budgets last week. Hillsdale approved a $21 million budget with a $99 increase for the average homeowner. Pascack Valley approved a $48 million budget with a $129 increase for the average Hillsdale homeowner, though the change in the tax levy varies for each of the four towns in the district.

The tax levy for Hillsdale Schools will increase 1.97 percent next year. The Pascack Valley tax levy will increase 2 percent. State law allows school boards to vote on their districts' budgets instead of the general public if they stay at a 2 percent or lower increase.

Hillsdale property owners account for 24.553 percent of the tax levy in the Pascack Valley Regional budget for next year, according to district Business Administrator Yas Usami. Montvale, which has petitioned to withdraw from the district, will pay the largest share at 25.716 percent. River Vale will pay 24.3555 percent, the smallest portion. Woodcliff Lake, where homeowners will actually see a decrease in taxes for the district next year, will pay 25.376 percent.

Pascack Valley and Hillsdale Schools have started sharing some services in order to save money. All four sending districts have agreed to participate in a new regional curriculum office, which started last summer. Next September, Hillsdale Schools will begin sharing Internet service with Pascack Valley High School via new fiber optic cables being installed this year.

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