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Board of Trustees
Village of Tarrytown
Special Meeting
April 28, 2010 No.
7:00 p.m.
PRESENT: Mayor Fixell, Trustees Basher, Butler, Hoyt, McGee, McGovern and Zollo; Administrator Blau, Treasurer Hart, Village Attorney Shumejda
Mayor Fixell opened the Special Meeting and read the following statement:
Let me begin by making it clear that we will be voting on a budget tonight that does not require any layoffs. Though one layoff was included in the tentative budget, it is the collective judgment of this Board that the broader interests of the village would best be served by not taking this action.
This budget was developed in the context of a severe economic crisis that has resulted in an enormous loss of revenues, significant and continuing financial hardship for many of our residents, and no relief from ongoing increases in costs, such as pensions and health insurance, that we simply do not control. For example, in just the last month, we learned that the projected increase in the cost of employee health insurance will be nearly double the original estimate, accounting for much of the change between the tax rate contained in the tentative budget and this one.
In response to these overwhelmingly negative conditions, our staff, in particular Village Administrator Mike Blau and Treasurer Jim Hart, together with this Board, have put together an extremely tight budget that, among other things, reduced staffing levels, kept flat or decreased discretionary expenditures, eliminated waste, moderately raised some non-tax fees such as parking rates, and kept management salary raises significantly below the rate of inflation. Taken together, all of these factors produced a budget with a net expenditure increase of 2.2 % and a tax increase of 2.88%.
But the unfortunate fact is that the current economic pressures are not about to let up, and the vast bulk of our costs is, and will continue to be, accounted for by salaries, wages and benefits, and the work rules mandated by collective bargaining agreements that regularly drive those expenditures up. And that is why as part of this budget season we made a concerted effort to work with one of our unions to make some modest changes to those rules that increase costs without providing added or improved services to our residents. In particular, we sought to change a set of rules forcing the village, in order to accomplish a variety of unskilled part-time tasks that take place outside of normal business hours, to employ our own skilled employees and pay overtime rates for that work. These rules cost the taxpayers of this
village tens of thousands of dollars every year and will continue to do so if they are not changed.
It should be made very clear that we were not asking to take actions such as lowering contractual wage increases or raising employee health plan contributions, actions that have been sought and often achieved, by numerous other municipalities and school districts. Rather, we sought a modest change that would simply allow the Village marginally greater flexibility in hiring appropriate personnel for tasks for which our regular staff had not been hired and which are below their skill levels.
However, I am disappointed and disheartened to report that one of the unions representing our employees has refused to make even the most minimal of those changes, and as a result not only put in jeopardy the employment of one of our staff members and one of their union members, but also prevented the village from bringing some additional relief to our hard-pressed taxpayers. And while neither I nor any member of this Board relishes the thought of attacking or blaming unions, and while we had in fact hoped that bringing in this final budget would have been a collaborative venture, in this case the one union has rejected a change that, by any remotely objective standard, is fair and reasonable. Unfortunately, their lack of action sets a negative tone for future relations and negotiations.
With that, unless other members of the board wish comment, I will ask for a motion on the budget resolution.
Trustee Butler stated that the tax rate increase was lower than the increase from last year and he was pleased with that fact. He further noted that next year will once again be difficult and the Board will be seeking fiscal controls and savings for the following fiscal year that could prompt some difficult decisions by the Board and the Village.
Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee McGovern that the following resolution adopting a budget for the Fiscal Year commencing June 1, 2010 and ending May 31, 2011 be approved. Motion carried, all voting “aye”. Approved: 7-0.
WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees has met at the time and place specified in the notice of public hearing on the tentative budget and heard all persons desiring to be heard thereon.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the tentative budget as amended and revised and as hereinafter set forth is hereby adopted and that there be and is hereby appropriated for the objects and purposes specified, including the amounts set forth required for the payment of principal and interest on indebtedness, the following amounts:
General Fund Water Fund Library Fund
Appropriations $20,167,929 $3,149,772 $1,546,038
Estimated
Revenues $19,567,929 $3,149,772 $1,466,038
Appropriated Fund
Balance $600,000 $0 $80,000
Total Budgetary Appropriation to be raised by
Real Estate Tax Levy $14,386,778
Taxable Assessed Value $57,787,842
Tax Rate per $1,000 $248.96
FISCAL YEAR 2010-2011 TAX LEVY AND WARRANT
WHEREAS, the budget for the fiscal year commencing June 1, 2010, has been duly adopted and filed with the Village Clerk; and
WHEREAS, it has been thereby determined that the sum of $20,167,929 will be necessary to meet the obligations of the Village; and
WHEREAS, there has been duly credited as against said sum estimated revenues and appropriated fund balance aggregating $5,781,151 leaving $14,386,778 to be raised by the levying of taxes; and
WHEREAS, it appears from the Assessment Roll of the year 2010 for taxes for the fiscal year June 1, 2010 that the total assessed valuation of real property in the Village is $57,787,842;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the tax rate for the Village of Tarrytown for the fiscal year commencing June 1, 2010 be and the same hereby is fixed at the rate of $248.96 on each $1,000 of assessed valuation for properties in the Village of Tarrytown.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the sum of $14,386,778, the same being taxes for the fiscal year commencing June 1, 2010 be, and the same hereby is, levied upon the taxable property in the Village of Tarrytown and that the Village Treasurer be and he hereby is authorized and directed to extend and carry out upon the roll the amount to be collected from each of the persons named thereon, and the respective amounts of said tax roll against each such parcel of taxable property set forth thereon be and the same hereby are levied upon each parcel of taxable property respectively which said levy includes items shown on the budget for the fiscal year commencing June 1, 2010.
Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee McGovern and unanimously carried that the Special Meeting be adjourned at 7:20 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Michael S. Blau
Village Administrator
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