Proposed $14.5M Mt. Pleasant Budget Carries 5% Tax Levy Hike
Mount Pleasant Supervisor Joan Maybury has proposed a $14.5 million budget for 2013 with a tax levy increase more than double the cap limit despite a spending reduction and possible layoffs.
Maybury said last week the currently proposed budget would have a 5 percent tax levy increase and a 4.1 percent tax rate increase. The average homeowner would pay an additional $42 next year under the current plan.
Maybury’s tentative budget would reduce spending by $81,510 over the current year’s $14,563,787. Despite less spending, Maybury said there are expenses beyond the control of town officials, including rising employee health insurance and pension costs. Originally, health insurance premiums were projected to rise 5 percent next year, but the town has learned it is slated to jump by 8 percent.
“What kills us is the big cost of medical insurance and the big cost of pensions,” Maybury said.
There are also increases scheduled for next year on the debt serivce for water and sewer projects as well as the town’s advanced life support contract.
Maybury is seeking to offset the increases through a reduction in the workforce. She has also proposed an early retirement incentive plan to hold down the number of layoffs. Under the plan, qualified town employees would receive a $5,000 payment if they agreed to retire early.
Maybury said she would not announce a specific number of layoffs until after she learned how many employees would accept the incentive.
School taxes make up 70 percent of a Mount Pleasant resident’s property tax bill, while county and town taxes each account for about 15 percent of a homeowner’s property tax bill. Town taxes are “a small piece of the pie,” Maybury said.
Public hearings on the budget and on a town board resolution to override the tax cap have been scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 27.
North Castle Budget Release Delayed
North Castle Supervisor Howard Arden announced Thursday that due to widespread power outages and extensive clean up caused by Hurricane Sandy, he will present the tentative budget to the town board on Friday, Nov. 16.
Arden, who originally had planned on releasing the budget on Oct. 30, said the town board had not been able to hold two scheduled budget work sessions with department heads. Those were rescheduled for the mornings of Nov. 14 and 15 at Hergenhan Recreation Center.
Municipalities affected by the hurricane and its aftermath were given about two weeks leniency by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to release tentative budgets, said Town Administrator Joan Goldberg.
Despite the budget delay, last Thursday night the board approved setting a budget public hearing for its next meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 28. There will also be another hearing and vote the same night to allow the board the flexibility to exceed the tax cap if necessary, although board members said they had no intention of doing that.
Martin Wilbur contributed to this article.
