The Maplewood Township Administrator tabled the introduction of the 2025 municipal budget on April 1 after the federal government cut $179,000 in grants and aid earmarked for health services on March 27.
The cuts were a part of more than $11 billion in funds that were rolled back nationally by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Friday. [23 states, including New Jersey, are suing to restore the funds.]
“We found out after close of business last Friday that the federal government had cut $179,000 of our funding,” said Maplewood Township Administrator Patrick Wherry, who also noted that the loss of funding affects South Orange, with which Maplewood has a shared service agreement related to public health.
“We had planned to introduce the budget tonight,” said Wherry, “but we’ll need some time to work on the budget to account for this reduction in grant funding. I would recommend we bring the budget back before the Township Committee for introduction at the next meeting instead of this meeting as originally planned.”
At the TC’s last meeting, Wherry said he expected to introduce a 2025 municipal budget with a tax levy increase of about 3.25%. TC members discussed budget items such as the SOMA Two Towns for All Ages coordinator, reducing pool fees (a proposal which was adopted at the April 1 meeting) and increasing stipends for TC members.
South Orange-Maplewood Health Officer Candice Davenport sounded the alarm about the impact of federal cuts on public health during her Board of Health presentation earlier in the evening on April 1.
“In light of the federal funding cuts to public health of $11 billion this week, we are seeing the decimation of the federal, state, and local public health workforce,” said Davenport. “On behalf of the whole Health Department and my colleagues around the state, I just want to acknowledge you and thank you for your steadfast and unwavering support for the public health workforce, both Maplewood and our sister town South Orange. Standing with your local health department demonstrates that you value a healthy town, that everyone in the community deserves to be healthy, to live up to their greatest potential, to love who they want, and that we believe that we are stronger together and more than what divides us.”
After presenting updates on measles, avian flu and upcoming vaccination clinics for children, Davenport responded to a question about the impacts of the funding cuts as follows:
“As of Friday last week, we were notified from the state as well as our professional organization that our funding has been cut in Maplewood that impacts almost $179,000 of funding. That was to fund our nurse, our local health outreach coordinator and administrative assistant. All of these serve the public and the greater good.”
Davenport continued, “In other towns as of this weekend, they have had to deal with firing local health department staff. The workforce is gone in some towns, so it’s really vital and important that people know what’s happening and the good that local public health does and how it is disappearing right before our eyes in the state of New Jersey and around the country. We are not isolated in this incident. Everywhere around the country, we are losing public health as we speak. This is a dire situation.”
