Odell Proposes No Property Tax Increase in Final Budget
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In her 11th and final budget presentation, Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell delivered a proposed $180 million 2023 budget last week that includes no property tax levy increase.
Speaking in the Putnam County Courthouse in Carmel Oct. 6, Odell, who is term-limited and will end her tenure Dec. 31, presented the budget to the County Legislature, which is expected to approve it in November.
“Tonight, our proposed 2023 budget carries out our vision of laying the groundwork for a better quality of life for future generations, and its implementation will complete our challenge of fulfilling our fiscal and social responsibilities to our constituents,” Odell said.
The 2023 budget proposal, which calls for a spending increase of 6.3% ($11.3 million), anticipates $74.7 million in sales tax revenue, or 42 percent of the budget.
“In March, we presented a sales tax revenue sharing proposal called ‘share the growth’ that we hope will continue the intermunicipal partnership between the county and local municipalities to get vital infrastructure projects done,” Odell said. “Recall that earlier this year we proposed, and the Legislature approved, $10 million in combined sales tax and American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to spearhead this initiative. Based on current trends, it appears that this initiative can continue in 2023, but it will be up to the future administration and Legislature to implement it.”
The budget provides a 3.5 percent cost-of-living increase to employees in its largest union – the CSEA – and in funding to outside agencies: libraries, the Putnam Arts Council, Cornell Cooperative Extension and the Putnam Humane Society and SPCA.
If the proposed budget is approved by the Legislature, it will include almost $46.7 million in real property taxes, the same amount as in 2022. The average county homeowner whose property is assessed at $400,859 will pay $1,250 in county property taxes. The property tax rate per $ 1,000 of assessed value will be $3.12, the lowest county property tax rate since 2009.
Legislature Chairman Neal Sullivan praised the package presented by Odell.
“The financial stability of the county has never been better, and we are extremely well positioned to withstand any bumps in the economy that may be ahead,” Sullivan said. “County Executive Odell has invested in areas that matter to our residents and to the quality of life of Putnam County. She has invested in public safety to make Putnam one of the safest counties in the country. She has invested in infrastructure, education and recreational facilities, including the Tilly Foster Farm and Educational Institute and the Putnam County Golf Course so we can all have fun, and have exciting places to take our families and friends right here in Putnam County.”
Since taking office, Odell has increased the county’s general fund balance by approximately $49 million, about the same amount that has been reduced from Putnam’s debt. Putnam currently has a strong Aa1 bond rating.
Odell praised retiring Commissioner of Finance William Carlin for his years of service to Putnam.
“Anyone and everyone who has had the pleasure of calling Bill a colleague, has also had the pleasure of calling him a friend. Putnam County will never know how much dedication and brilliance that Bill has, in his career, brought to us,” she said. “In March 2020 when the state and Putnam County shut down from COVID, we were devasted by the unknown. Bill with his insight kept us not even just above water, but better than that. There is no person that I can say cared more about the fiscal stability and the impact it would have on all of the families in our county than Bill Carlin. I am eternally grateful to you Bill, and I am honored to have had the opportunity to serve beside you for the good of the people of Putnam County.”
Rick has more than 40 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, running the gamut from politics and crime to sports and human interest. He has been an editor at Examiner Media since 2012. Read more from Rick’s editor-author bio here. Read Rick’s work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/pezzullo_rick-writer/
