Rockville Centre mulls a $56.8M budget for the 2025 FY

By DANIEL OFFNER

doffner@liherald.com

Rockville Centre is considering a $56.8 million budget for the 2025 fiscal year. Offering a brief overview of the proposed spending plan, following a public hearing on March 18, Comptroller Dennis Morgan explained some of the major assumptions driving up costs.

“The budget for the 2025 fiscal year was a challenging one to prepare due to the cost increases that are being felt nationwide,” Morgan said. “Despite these financial pressures, we were able to mitigate much of the tax burden by using $1.8 million from the village fund balance.”

Morgan added that as a result of the rising cost of unfunded state mandates, which include a 20 percent increase in state health insurance over the past two years, as well as workers compensation insurance increases, contractual salary hikes for unionized employees, and inflation, the spending plan would exceed the 2 percent tax cap mandated by the state by 4.9 percentage points.

In total, the tax levy proposed for the next fiscal year is just shy of $39 million, a 6.9 percent increase over the current year. It was calculated using the formula required by the state, and figures in tax base growth and the change in payments in lieu of taxes.

This is not the first time the village has exceeded the state cap in recent years. The 2024 budget increased the tax levy by 2.9 percent, a result of unfunded state mandates and increased employee benefits.

Taxes are expected to increase for the average homeowner by roughly $396 for the year, or about $33 per month, Morgan said.

Estimated revenues are also expected to increase in the next fiscal year, based on real property taxes, departmental income, licenses, permits, fines, forfeitures, state and federal aid, intergovernmental charges and the sale of property.

Due to the anticipated increase in health insurance costs, workers compensation and interest from borrowing, however, expenses are expected to produce a net deficit of roughly $1.8 million. To help mitigate a potentially greater tax increase for residents, the village will offset the deficit by making use of $1.8 million from the village fund balance.

Mayor Francis Murray said that as is the case with most municipalities around the country, the 2025 budget proved to be a challenge due to inflation and unfunded state mandates.

“My administration labored to find a balance between a tax increase, budget cuts and the use of fund balance reserves to mitigate the burden on our residents while still providing the services our residents have come to expect,” Murray said in a statement. “We will continue to look for ways to reduce costs and bring in additional revenue to the village, including being aggressive in pursing grant money, private-public partnerships, and gifts to make improvements at little expense to our residents.”

The public hearing on the budget will continue at the monthly village board meeting on April 1 at 7 p.m. at Village Hall. Those interested in viewing the proposed spending plan can find it online at RVCNY.gov.