This report covers the activities of Lavallette Voters and Taxpayers Association from May 2007 to April 2008.

Membership in LVT continues to climb thanks to the tireless work of our membership chairperson Ann Gorga. At this time last year, we had 362 paid families. At the same time this year, we have an additional 200 families. We are proud to report that for the year 2007, we had over 700 family memberships. Membership dues are the main source of our revenue which is vital in supporting our scholarships and newsletters.

Communication with our members and the general community of Lavallette has been very successful via our Newsletters published twice a year and via our website. Many positive responses have come from Lavallette residents and also from surrounding communities. We answer questions and provide information to inquiries via our website and regular mail.

Three $500 Scholarships were awarded. Two scholarships were awarded to resident students and one to a student who is a grandchild of an LVT member.

Guest speaker (s):

• John Paff, an open-government advocate presented a wealth of information about citizen's rights to access public information.
• Kathleen Cupano, Program Development Admnistrator from the Center for Government Services from Rutgers University spoke to the association about the different forms or government under the Faulkner Act.

Parking committee representative from LVT participated in the Borough's Parking Committee which has made some recommendations to the Mayor and Council to alleviate some ongoing parking issues.

Municipal meetings are attended by representatives from LVT. Of concern to us and to members of the community are:

• Energy costs-doubling of Lavallette electric rates as of January 2008. Investigating alternate sources of energy.
• $67,000 fine imposed on the Borough by the DEP for alleged violations of dune maintenance
• High costs of sewer bills
• Storm drain maintenance to reduce flooding
• Parking issues
• Beaches opening by Memorial Day to increase revenues similar to adjoining towns
• Using the water tower for more cell antennas
• State of NJ's discussions of consolidation of small school districts
• Tape-recording of closed session meetings for accountability.
• Exploring the feasibility of extending voting privileges to non-resident property owners
• Budgetary expenditures

Co-sponsorship of Candidate's night to provide a forum for local candidates to present their platform to the community.

Attended and participated in public hearing related to the transfer of Liquor License for a local restaurant.

Sponsored a Holiday Decorating Contest and awarded three monetary prizes.

Participated in Heritage Day by raising awareness of our organization, answering questions, encouraging membership and displaying historical photos.

In closing, I want to say that I deeply appreciate the support of all of our members.

To our Officers and Directors, I cannot thank you enough for all the time and interest you put into our Organization. We are all volunteers representing the taxpayer's interest--we are here for you!

Anyone wishing to join our dedicated group please contact us via e-mail or regular mail.

Thanks and have a great summer!