Tax Cap Means Difficult 2012 Budget For Tarrytown

The recent property tax cap legislation signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo is going to affect Tarrytown, Village Administrator Michael Blau said, when it comes to the 2012-13 budget.

“It’s going to be much more difficult to budget,” Blau said, without an impact on personnel.

The legislation limits the percentage of property taxes that can be raised to two percent or the cost of inflation, whichever is less. The tax cap can be overturned for one year if more than 60 percent of voters approve it. The legislation is designed to provide relief to homeowners. New York, and Westchester in particular, have some of the highest property tax rates in the country.

Blau said many things in the budget will see increases in cost over two percent, which affects the budget. Health insurance, he explained, is one such item that is expected to increase in cost.

The village is anticipating a 13.3 percent rise in the cost of health insurance, Blau noted, which would have to be accommodated. Fuel is another cost that Blau explained could rise more. The increases in cost mean that the village would need to work to save money within its budget so that it can stay within the two percent tax cap.

Blau did not rule out any specific areas that the village would be looking at to cut costs, if they need to, when creating the 2012-13 budget, saying they’d be looking at everything.

“Everything will be on the table,” Blau said.

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