Ryan wants to tap emergency fund
Request aims to shield taxpayers from large hikes due to pandemic
KINGSTON, N.Y. » For the first time, Ulster County lawmakers are poised to tap the special “tax stabilization fund” created as part of the 2015 budget to help buffer county taxpayers against big property tax increases.
County Executive Pat Ryan has asked legislators for approval to draw up to $1,476,084.28 from the fund to offset county expenses related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The county Legislature was scheduled to take up a resolution authorizing the request on Tuesday.
“In my mind, this is exactly what this fund was set up for,” Ryan said Monday. “This is beyond a rainy day, this is a stormy day. Typical rainy day funds wouldn’t envision this sort of emergency.
“I really want to give credit to [former County Executive] Mike
Hein and the county Legislature for putting this in place several years ago and creating a situation where we can continue to provide essential services,” Ryan said.
According to the resolution establishing it, the tax stabilization fund was created to protect taxpayers from “unsustainable and unpredictable fluctuations in county taxes” and guard against
unforeseen increases in county costs or cuts in state aid.
Ryan said the funding will be used to cover expenses the county has incurred through July as a result of the pandemic, including establishing and staffing coronavirus testing sites and providing security at those sites.
“This is really to offset unforeseen costs related specifically and pretty narrowly to the COVID emergency,” Ryan said. “These are specific expenses we know will be reimbursed through the FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) guidelines.”
He said, though, that based on past experience, it could be years before the county ultimately sees any reimbursement from the federal government.
“This will help to sort of bridge that gap,” he said of tapping the stabilization fund.
The fund was established in 2015 with a $1.5 million infusion of cash. Since then, the Legislature has approved additional allocations to that account, which now stands at $2,594,109.51.