Amityville OKs $16.99M budget with tax increase, raises for some workers

The Amityville Village board of trustees recently passed a $16.99 million spending plan tfor 2020-21 that raises taxes. Credit: Steve Pfost
An Amityville trustee voted against the village’s proposed budget, saying there should be no tax increases during the COVID-19 crisis.
The village board approved the $16.99 million budget by a vote of 4-1 during an April 27 board meeting via Zoom. The spending plan raises taxes by 1.78%, with the tax rate rising from $35.89 to $36.53 per $100 of assessed value. Homeowners with a house worth about $401,525 will see an annual increase in their taxes from $3,400 to $3,461.
Before the board voted, trustee Jessica Bernius read a statement in which she said she had contacted board members the week before the scheduled vote, calling for no tax increase in the 2020-2021 spending plan and a freeze on all noncontractual workers’ salaries.
“My thinking being that when this budget was proposed, we were in a pre-COVID-19 [state] with a booming economy,” she said. “Now, however, realistically, we are in a totally new economy in which no one can foresee its future and how quickly it will rebound.”
Bernius said she worried that the village would have a shortfall in revenue as a result of the economic fallout from the virus. She also noted that a projected pension contribution of $1.6 million was based off a “pre-COVID-19 stock market” that has since “plummeted.”
“It was explained to me that this is only a $5 a month increase,” she said. “But if I am a village resident who has been asked to take a pay cut or even worse, has lost my job and health insurance, that $5 a month will go toward putting food on the table and not toward my mortgage or taxes.”
In response, trustee Michael O’Neill said he was concerned that a zero-increase budget would put the village in a bad position with bond raters, who have been raising the village’s grades since 2013 when Amityville neared junk bond levels.
“I just don’t think this is the time for us to stop the momentum,” O’Neill said. “We always have the ability as the year progresses to make adjustments to our spending.” He noted the budget already is anticipating a decrease in revenue from the court and building department.
Resident Donelle Cronin asked Mayor Dennis Siri whether he’d asked noncontractual employees to take a pay freeze. He said he hadn’t.
“I feel they are worthy of the raise they get,” he said. “I appreciate everything our workers do and I think a 2% raise for them is not asking a lot of our taxpayers.”
Snowy mix hits region ... What's the future of NUMC? ... LI Swifties ready for the big game ... Chow down in Charleston ... What's up on Long Island
Snowy mix hits region ... What's the future of NUMC? ... LI Swifties ready for the big game ... Chow down in Charleston ... What's up on Long Island