County OKS $719M budget
Plan includes some salary increases, slight tax decrease
The $719 million Albany County budget unanimously approved by the County Legislature includes a slight property tax decrease and 2 percent raises for all county employees.
The legislature Monday night made several amendments to the budget County Executive Dan Mccoy proposed earlier this year, including adding a new mental health program and funds for future investments in the county Board of Elections. The amended budget does not cut any county services or programs.
Wanda Willingham, the legislature’s Audit and Finance Committee chair, said the budget supported communities and economic recovery efforts in the county.
“Overall, I believe we have the critical resources included in the budget to help those most impacted by the pandemic to begin recovery,” she said.
Among the legislative amendments are two new social workers in the Department of Mental Health, which are part of the county ’s new diversion program that will send social workers and EMTS on nonviolent 911 calls in some towns and villages
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in the county.
The legislature also increased the contingent account it controls from $200,000 to $400,000. The legislature did not lay out all of what that money will be used for but at least $100,000 will go toward improvements at the county Board of Elections.
Another two accounts the legislature controls were decreased by more than $588,000.
The budget relies on $3 million from the county’s fund balance and $5 million from its debt service fund to close the revenue gap. Earlier this year the county also paid $15,000 buyouts each to 72 employees as an effort to cut future costs.
Mccoy has justified the raises for all county employees by saying he had been in negotiations with the county ’s unions to agree to not take their 2 percent raises in 2021, but was not able to make the deal by the time the budget needed to be presented. To give raises to union employees but withhold it from nonunion employees would be unfair, he’d said previously.
In a statement, Mccoy said it was the eighth year in a row without a tax increase and credited the partnership with the legislature to continue the streak during the pandemic.
“We recognize that under these grim circumstances, there are still too many struggling to make ends meet and dealing with mental health and addiction issues and so much
more,” he said.
The county tax rate will fall from $3.49 per $1,000 of equalized value to $3.48. For a homeowner with a $150,000 home, the tax bill will fall by $1. The proposed budget levy is $97.5 million, up from $94.8 million.