|
PV Supervisor Proposes 19.79% Overall Tax Increase
The Town Board must now decide what to accept, cut, or increase out of Supervisor's proposed 2008 budget
by Edward Paul Greiff
Putnam Valley Supervisor Sam Davis submitted his 2008 Town Budget to the Town Board on Friday, September 28, 2007. In a letter accompanying it he implied that his budget was frugal but prudent and honestly reflected the Town's financial situation. Supervisor Davis wrote, "The budget-to-budget increase in expenses for the town general budget is just under five percent. The budget-to-budget expense increase for the highway department is just over 2%. However, the tax increase to our residents will be 19.79% as revenues are expected to drop and the fund balance is too depleted to use to offset taxes."
The combined Town and Highway budget is $8,922,192. This is offset by revenue and other deductions amounting to $2,741,625. This leaves a balance of $6,180,567 to be raised by taxes. It also reflects $0 being appropriated from an already depleted Fund Balance of less than $300,000.
In discussing the budget with Supervisor Davis he said he trimmed the salary of the Confidential Aide position to that previously recommended by the Town Board. He eliminated the position of Videographer with the recommendation that the service be contracted out as it was previously done. He trimmed the Town Clerk's salary. He reduced the amount requested by the Fire Department and the Highway Department. The Ambulance Corps remains the same.
He added back the Photovoltaic project, based on his assessment that it will save the town money in the long run. In addition he is biting the bullet and adding a tax to start increasing the Fund Balance Reserves to where they should be as recommended by the State: ten percent of the town's annual budget. According to Davis, this would mean raising the Fund Balance from its current level of $300,000 to approximately $700,000.
Davis contends that although a Town budget increase of 20% would increase homeowners' taxes by approximately $120 a year, it is still the school tax that is driving people out of Putnam Valley. And it is towards reducing this tax burden that Davis will be working in the future. He has joined a coalition in Albany to support the Cahill Bill for tax reform on how Schools are funded. The recommendation is to eliminate property tax and replace it with a combination of income and sales tax, thereby spreading the burden of school funding amongst a greater population, not just the property owners.
When asked about his plans for the future, Davis replied that he will be going back to teaching science at DeWitt Clinton School in the Bronx and will also resume his chiropractic practice. He feels confident that the Comprehensive Master Plan will be adopted by year end and that, considering all the obstacles they had to overcome, to do it in the time frame allotted is a major accomplishment for his administration.
Davis expressed his concerns for the future of Putnam Valley and the eventual loss of its environmental charm because of unrestrained housing development and a lack of the right kind of commercial development. He promises the ghost of Sam Davis will continue to be in the audience fighting for what he believes is right and is in the best interests of the people of Putnam Valley.
Providing local news, information and opinions from
Philipstown and Putnam Valley, NY
Encompassing the Villages of Cold Spring and Nelsonville,
and the hamlet of Garrison, Putnam County, NY.
This site is a publication of The Putnam County News and Recorder, the source for news and information of the Philipstown
and Putnam Valley area. The PCN&R is 139
years old, published in hard copy every Wednesday, and circulated throughout Putnam
County, NY.
The PCN&R prints LEGAL NOTICES
for: Putnam County, The Town of Philipstown, The Town of Putnam Valley, Village of Cold Spring, Village of
Nelsonville, the Haldane Union Free School District and the Garrison Union Free School
District.
Deadline for printed press releases, advertisements and classifieds is Monday at noon for
Wednesday publication. This site is updated on an as-needed basis with a minimum update
weekly on Thursdays. For further information or to request a subscription to the paper, please
contact us with your name and mailing address at:
(845) 265-2468 PO Box 185, Cold Spring, NY 10516, or e-mail us at editor@pcnr.com
If you see an advertiser on line, tell them! | Click ads below
for larger version
System and Method for Display
Ads have a Patent Pending.
Click Here for More Information
|
