By Angela Marshall
The increase raises the tax rate from $23 to $24.36 per $100 of assessed valuation. The average homeowner, with an assessed value of $7,700, will pay an extra $105 in village taxes, up from $1771 in 2002-03 to $1,875.72 in 2003-04. The village is not using the new Nassau County assessments to compute taxes for the 2003-04 fiscal year.
Residents will get a chance to weigh in on the budget at a budget hearing on April 3 at 8 p.m. at Village Hall, One College Place. The Citizens' Budget Advisory Committee, a group of residents who review the budget every year, were readying a statement to the board on the budget at press time.
Trustee Greg Rinn said he is not happy about the almost 6 percent tax increase but feels that it's necessary if the village is to maintain services. He praised the village administration for being Òvery, very professional and keeping the increase as low as it is.
Rinn and other board members were quick to point out the higher tax increases proposed in neighboring villages. Lynbrook is proposing a 20 percent tax-rate increase, and Freeport is looking at 9.3 percent. Valley Stream's increase, however, is 4.2 percent.
Rockville Centre's budget line for health insurance is up 13 percent, from $2,107,000 to $2,390,000. State retirement is up 436 percent, from $125,000 last year to $669,388. Trustee Jack Matthews said the increase is a guess because nobody knows what the real facts are behind how much the village will end up paying the state pension bill.
The board issued a $1.8 million bond last year Ñ which residents are still paying Ñ to fund police-department retirements, making possible a $241,000 reduction in the police retirement budget from $371,000 to the current $130,000. The proposed budget calls for that figure to increase 563 percent to $862,517.
Village officials blame these retirement and health insurance increases on the state. They say the state is passing along shortfalls brought about by the stock market's decline.
The village plans to add $203,425, or 10 percent, to culture and recreation, bringing expenditures in this area up to $2,274,200. More than half of that is recouped in revenues. Parks and recreation fees are expected to bring in $1,280,000 next year.
The culture and recreation increase will go, in part, to pay for a new parks worker, care of the new north field, a 6 percent increase in senior services and a 5 percent increase in the Martin Luther King Jr. Center budget.
The village's biggest revenue source aside from taxes is the electric fund, with $2,470,414. Some other sources are parking meters, $800,000; fines and forfeitures, $1,080,000; building permits, $660,000; water fund, $901,845; and state aid, $620,000. Total estimated revenues are expected to rise 7 percent, from $9,560,147 to $10,250,135.
Villagers can look at the budget in Village Hall prior to the hearing. The board may adopt the budget after the public hearing on April 3 or at the next board meeting on April 28.
