RARITAN TOWNSHIP, N.J. (Hunterdon County) — Raritan Township officials will conduct a comprehensive review of the township’s stormwater utility to determine whether it remains an effective and equitable way to fund stormwater management needs.
Mayor Brad Perry and the Township Committee said the review will examine the utility’s financial sustainability, fairness to taxpayers and property owners, and whether alternative funding approaches could better meet the township’s needs.
“Several years have passed since Raritan Township started down the road of a stormwater utility, and the Township Committee and I believe we owe it to our taxpayers to take a fresh look at whether it is achieving the goals set for it,” Perry said. “We need to determine if this model, presented to us by experts as the best solution at the time, remains viable for our community. If not, it should be discontinued.”
Township officials said they remain committed to meeting environmental and infrastructure requirements but will evaluate whether the stormwater utility remains the appropriate mechanism to pay for that work.
“As a governing body, we will always do what is best for our business owners, residents and the environment, and we have consistently addressed important infrastructure needs to meet increasingly demanding state-mandated stormwater requirements,” Perry said. “However, the utility was the mechanism selected to fund these activities. We would have been making this necessary progress regardless. The Committee’s question now is whether this specific funding model is still the right one.”
Officials also raised concerns about property owners that have not paid stormwater fees, including the state.
“When this approach was adopted, there was an expectation that all property owners benefiting from stormwater services would contribute their fair share. Unfortunately, the State has not lived up to its part of that bargain by neglecting to pay its stormwater fees, and other entities have followed its example,” Perry said. “The Township Committee recognizes that this raises a fundamental question about the long-term fairness and viability of the utility. If some of the largest property owners can refuse to pay, we must understand what that means for everyone else paying the fee and explore our options for remediation.”
The township said the review will not begin with a predetermined decision on whether to retain or discontinue the utility.
“This review will be driven by facts, not by a predetermined outcome,” Perry said. “Good government means the entire Township Committee being willing to revisit past decisions when circumstances change. If it proves to be inequitable and there is a better, fairer way forward, we are fully prepared to pursue it.”
“Our shared responsibility is to protect our community, meet our environmental obligations, and be careful stewards of taxpayer dollars,” Perry concluded. “We have a plan in place to implement the State’s stormwater management requirements, and now is the right time for us to determine together if the utility is sustainable and fair to our business owners and residents, or if it is time to pursue other options.”
