Patchogue officials have just posted to the village website the tentative budget for the next fiscal year. The budget calls for a 1.71 percent spending increase, which is below the state’s 1.78 percent tax cap.
It has to be formally adopted by April 20, according to state law.
In the meantime, the Village Board last week voted unanimously to reserve the right to pierce the state’s tax cap, should the need arise.
Mayor Paul Pontieri said the board does so each year as a matter of procedure. If the village pierces the cap without the vote, it gets financially penalized by the state, he added.
The proposed tax increase has the village spending about $300,000 more in the fiscal year 2021 over 2020.
The fiscal year runs from May 31 to June 1 of 2021.
“We create a budget that serves the public,” Pontieri told GreaterPatchogue on Friday. “There’s a reason we’ve been able to pave roads, rebuild the swimming pool and the sewer plant.”
Click here for a link to the proposed budget:
The total appropriations amount to about $16 million, which includes spending within the general fund, sewer and business districts.
The tax levy to be collected from residents amount to about $9 million, with the difference in spending being made up by revenues.
The village is also showing a surplus of about $3.3 million, which helps with the village’s bond ratings and allows for grant matching.
“We work very hard to do two things, keep the tax rate affordable for the residents while still providing the services needed to take care of the quality of life issues residents are concerned about, potholes taken care of, paving the streets, the parks and public safety,” Pontieri said.
File Photo: Swings at the village’s Father Tortora Park.
