Town Of Huntington Proposes $194M Budget For 2018

The Town of Huntington presented a $194.2 million proposed budget for 2018, which is under that state's tax cap.

Huntington Supervisor Frank P. Petrone presented the proposed budget at the Town Board meeting on Tuesday night. The budget looks to maintain all Town services at current levels, with a $4.2 million spending increase over 2017. The increase is due to higher health care costs.

A few budget proposal highlights include:

• The proposed tax levy would increase by $2.12 million, or 1.80 percent, which is below the state tax cap of 1.84 percent. Some could experience a smaller tax increase since the tax levy increase for the three major funds – General Fund, Highway Fund and Refuse District Fund – is 1.1 percent.
• Residents in the Huntington and Commack ambulance districts would see decreases in the tax levies for those funds: 12.6 percent in Huntington and 3.18 percent in Commack.
• The budget does not call for any layoffs, however it forecast a small decrease in staffing due to attrition.
• Budget calls for capital spending at the same level as in 2017, $16.6 million, and continues the policy of retiring more debt than the Town incurs.
• Budget would fund the following projects: $3.75 million to begin construction of the James E. Conte Community Center at the former Armory in Huntington Station and $3 million to build a new Animal Shelter adjacent to Mill Dam Park in Halesite.
• Budget would assist in constructing its first two spray parks – one at Manor Field Park, next to the Conte Center, and the other at Elwood Park, in memory of New York City Police Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo, who was killed in the line of duty last year. Sgt. Tuozzolo lived near Elwood Park.

Petrone released a statement on the proposed budget: “I continue to advocate for changes to the Tax Cap Act that will allow the Town to expand upon existing successful programs - such as the continuation of the Town Open Space Bond Act, and to develop new economic drivers, like the formation of special improvement districts which deal with issue specific concerns and solutions, and the establishment of new Business Improvement Districts to further enhance our small business communities. I continue to advocate that the Tax Cap Act should be amended to exclude from the Cap calculation, those programs specifically approved by voters in a referendum vote. To date, these efforts have not been supported by the State. I do feel however this will become an eventuality, as municipalities will be forced to discontinue successful programming from their agendas simply because the Cap calculation does not afford us the same exceptions as other taxing jurisdictions are able to take advantage of.”

Shutterstock image