County Board Budget Cuts Taxes -2.2%
Slashes Spending $30M, Reduces Workforce 10%, Protects Vital Services

     In December, the Westchester County Board of Legislators passed a bipartisan budget for 2011 that cut taxes -2.2%, slashed spending by $30 million, and reduced the workforce by 10%. The budget passed 16-1 with all five Republicans voting with Democrats on the spending plan. The -2.2% tax cut was more than twice the tax cut proposed by the Astorino administration. Coupled with last year’s $20M spending cut, the $50 million two year cut in spending equates to a ten point savings on the tax levy.

Fitch’s rating agency reaffirmed the county’s AAA rating based on the final 2011 budget. At the same time, the budget restored damaging cuts to the Department of Emergency Services, the crime lab, environmental protection and public health initiatives. The Board also eliminated the County Executives proposal to bond tax certioraris, a risky tactic that helped, in part, to cause Nassau County to be placed in receivership of a fiscal oversight board.

The budget process was the most transparent in Westchester history. All meetings of the Committee on Budget & Appropriations were streamed live. Three public hearings were held that were attended by over 2,000 people. County Legislator Peter Harckham, who helped craft the budget package said, “Two messages rang loud and clear: tax relief was paramount, and several of the cuts in the County Executive’s budget were a threat to public safety and public health and didn’t allow enough time to responsibly transition away from certain services.” He added, “The Board’s budget delivers badly needed tax relief, eliminates fiscal gimmickry, and restores cuts to vital services.”

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