Local Representatives Respond To State Aid Bailout
The two local representatives in the state Legislature are ready to do their part to ensure Jamestown receives the money they need to cover the 2017 budget deficit.
On Monday, Anthony Dolce, Ward 2 councilman and Finance committee chairman, announced state officials have agreed to increase aid to the city by $824,926 next year, which eliminates the 2017 fiscal deficit. He said state officials have given reasonable assurances that they will increase the city’s state aid in 2017.
In exchange for an increase in state aid, Dolce said city officials have agreed to pursue an aggressive initiative agenda in 2017 to generate more revenue and cut expenses. He said city officials cannot go into details about the initiatives at this time because it involves personnel and contracts. He added Sam Teresi, Jamestown mayor, will announce the new initiatives in 2017.
State Sen. Catharine Young, R-Olean, said this anticipated financial assistance to relieve the heavy burden from Jamestown taxpayers will be a one-time allocation.
”The mayor has acknowledged that changes must be made to the city’s budgeting and operational practices to cure this structural deficit,” she said. ”It is up to city government to find solutions for how they structure themselves. The taxpayers need relief from a suffocating tax burden, and I stand ready to help with issues that are under the state’s jurisdiction.”
State Assemblyman Andy Goodell, R-Jamestown, said it will be a one-time stimulus for the city, not a recurring payment that will be made by the state toward the city budget each year.
”I support it as a part of the strategic plan for the city’s fiscal sustainability,” Goodell said.
Goodell said the state Division of Budget is where the increase in state aid will come from if it is a part of the final state budget, which will start with Gov. Andrew Cuomo presenting the budget in January. The state budget has an April 1 deadline for approval from the state Legislature. He said state Division of Budget officials are working hard internally to see if they can help the city.
”To some that might sound unnerving, but the state Division of Budget has six weeks to present a $150 billion budget. The fact they don’t have details on the $800,000 for the city is expected,” he said.
”The state Division of Budget is aware of Jamestown’s situation, but the source of funding has not been finalized.”
Goodell said if Cuomo backs the financial support for the city, it has a high probability of happening. However, until the budget is presented and approved by the state Legislature, it is tentative, Goodell said.
Brent Sheldon, Ward 1 councilman, was the only council member to vote against the budget. He said it is ”hard to believe” the state will increase the city’s aid by more than the cuts that occurred in 2010 and 2011. The proposed increase in state aid for 2017 is $367,411 more than the total cut in aid in 2010 and 2011.
According to the executive budget summary, state aid was cut to the city in 2010 by $364,203 to a total of $4,665,592. In 2011, city officials received an additional cut of $93,312 for a total of $4,572,280, which has remained flat through 2016. The 2010 and 2011 cuts in state aid totaled $457,515.
The tax levy for the 2017 budget is $15,694,050, an increase of $150,220, or .96 percent. With the increase, the city has reached its constitutional tax limit. The constitutional tax limit is the amount of money a municipality can ask its property taxpayers to provide compared to the total assessed property value in the community. Each municipality in the state has a constitutional tax limit of 2 percent of the five-year average of the total assessed property value in the community. The city’s taxable assessed property totals $666,586,989.
The tax levy increase is $42,955 above the state’s tax cap limit, which is .69 percent for the city in 2017. Last month, council voted to pass a local law to override the tax cap for the 2017 spending plan. Sheldon was the only council member to vote against the tax cap override. With the tax levy increase exceeding the state tax cap, residential property tax payers will not be receiving a tax freeze program rebate check next year.
The 2017 tax rate will be $23.77 per $1,000 assess property value. This is an 18 cent increase, or .76 percent. The budget totals $35,052,304.
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