Helping the bottom line

Tough times lead to new ways of thinking as Vernon fine-tunes budget, By Jan Baker Vernon — As Vernon looks for ways to trim its budget and save money, its Deputy Township Manager Brian Palaia has been tasked with finding ways Vernon can enter shared services contracts with neighboring towns. It won’t fix everything, he said in a recent phone conversation, but it’s an “opportunity to create some efficiencies.” As an example, Vernon has been negotiating a contract with Sussex Borough to share the services of a subcode official. A proposed multi-year agreement is currently under negotiation. In another move, Sussex Borough has approved a plan to pay Vernon $8,700 for a year-long contract with Vernon to provide animal control services. This agreement is scheduled to be brought to the Town Council for approval at the next Council meeting. Vernon currently employs Tom Maellaro full-time for animal control services. According to Palaia, Acting Township Manager Robin Kline has set a goal to recapture revenue by sharing these services, in the hope of reinstating the full staff of the Animal Control Department back to where it was. Under the previous town manager, part-timers in this department had been let go. Vernon’s Department of Public Works has made and sold traffic signs to the Borough of Hamburg and Palaia said Vernon has recently received a similar request from Green Township. Vernon has long contracted its police dispatch capabilities to other municipalities. A dispatch agreement with Sussex and Wantage brings in about $84,000 per year.

Sharing services is not necessarily a money-maker, but a way to recapture revenue for the town. It is also an opportunity “to build a relationship with other towns” and “to start to get us thinking about being a service provider. Brian Palaia, Vernon Deputy Town Manager

What is ‘shared services?’
Sharing services among or between municipal governments is a way to save costs on similar services. Instead of neighboring towns individually employing, for example, an animal control officer or a municipal court system, they jointly hire and share their use. Each town government creates a contract that spells out the terms of obligation and use. Typically, the arrangement is a good way to split costs when neither requires a full-timer.