By Mike Schnitzel
Few changes were made to the budget, which was first unveiled to the public at a work session two weeks ago.
"It was a very tight and sound budget," said Mayor Edward Cahill. "Our goal was to have an increase of under 4 percent, and we were able to do that."
The $31 million budget is an increase of $1.29 million, or 4 percent, over the 2006-07 budget. The tax rate will be $30.86 per $100 of assessed valuation, so the average homeowner will see an increase of $59 on the village portion of their tax bill, an increase of 3.99 percent from the current year.
The total assessment of the village was increased by about $154,000 over last year, leading village officials to reduce the amount they intended to appropriate from the fund balance to reduce the tax levy from about $237,000 to $183,000.
The village only reassesses homes that obtain permits for construction and alterations to buildings, said Village Clerk Vincent Ang. Valley Stream does not reassess homes ever year like Nassau County. According to Ang, the average assessment of a home in the village is about $5,000.
Ang explained that the village put more money back into the fund balance rather than reducing taxes to protect the village's interests. "We need to carry a fund balance to protect the village in case there are any claims against us," Ang said. "We are self-insured to a certain extent in several areas, so using less fund balance is always preferable."
Rising medical costs, insurance and utilities, and the new labor contract were all factors in the budget increase, according to village officials. The labor contract, which was settled last May, is retroactive to 2005-06 and calls for a 4 percent salary increase, Ang said.
The village's road program will continue to be funded with state money from the Consolidated Highway Improvement Fund. In the 2007-08 budget, $291,000 will be spent on road repairs, much of which will come from CHIF.
Last year, the village used CHIF funds to establish an internal road construction department, which has been repairing roads based on ratings provided by village engineers. CHIF¹s funding of the road crew reduces the amount of money the village must borrow for road improvement projects, but does not eliminate it, Ang said.
The village will bond $924,000 to expedite the road improvement process. "This way we will have two road crews working in the village," Ang said. "Road crews from our department and outside contractors. It will speed up the process."
An additional $101,000 will be bonded for repairs to the garage roof at the Department of Public Works in Arlington Park, according to Deputy Village Treasurer Mike Fox.
³This is a good budget,² said Village Treasurer John Mastromarino, when the budget was first proposed. He added that he felt that the spending plan kept the village on a fiscally sound footing. ³Every department has everything it needs to operate properly.²
Comments about this story? Mschnitzel@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 265.
