WESTCHESTER COUNTY BOARD OF LEGISLATORS PASSES ’08 BUDGET
Legislature Cuts Proposed Property
Tax Hike Down To 3.89%

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 11, 2007

After cutting $9 million in government spending and adding back funding for many of the county's non-profit contract agencies that provide services to children and families, not originally included in the County Executive's budget, the County Board last night approved a $1.77 billion spending plan for 2008. The legislators brought the tax levy increase down to 3.89%, almost a percentage point less than what was originally proposed.

The 2008 budget amounts to a 4.15% increase in spending over last year's budget. The cost of state mandated services provided by the Department of Social Services accounts for the bulk of this increase.

“We held the increase in the property tax levy to a low 3.89% despite a projected decrease in the rate of growth of sales tax revenues and a dramatic increase in the social services budget to cover the cost of over 1,400 new child protective cases," said County Board Chair Bill Ryan (D-I-WF, White Plains).

County Legislator Michael Kaplowitz (D,I,WF-Somers), Chair of the Committee on Budget & Appropriations, said that the 2008 budget represented realistic spending and revenue estimates.

"This legislature delivered a fiscally disciplined budget based on sound investment assumptions that earns a triple A bond rating from the Moody's and Standard & Poor's investment community," said Kaplowitz. "This rating is an important designation that saves millions in our yearly debt service obligation. We can then apply those saved millions to operational expenses."

“This budget reflects that we’re meeting our public policy objective of creating budget certainty from year to year,” said Kaplowitz. “This is the ninth time out of ten years that we've lowered the County Executive's proposed tax levy increases and have kept the average annual increase near the rate of inflation despite the continued pressure from New York State on costly mandated programs such as Medicaid and Early Intervention/PreK."

The budget gave particular focus to:

• Engendering greater use of licensed quality childcare facilities through a further reduction, from 15% to 10%, in child care co-payments;
• Enhancing public safety with the addition of more officers and emergency service employees;
• Increases to Westchester Community College;
• No cuts to transit system with only a modest fare increase;
• Continued investment in quality of life initiatives such as the Westchester Arts Council and the Westchester Library System;
• Continued capital budget investment in open space/legacy programs and affordable housing initiatives;
• Restoration of a range of social services including mental health services for kids as well as an increase in funding for Invest in Kids programs.

Ryan noted with concern that state and federal unfunded mandated costs account for about 70% of the county’s budget and that pressure continues to build.