Supervisor’s First Budget Is a ‘Road Map to Recovery’
SEPTEMBER 29, 2006, FARMINGVILLE, NY – Brookhaven Town Supervisor Brian X. Foley outlined his 2007 budget, a “road map to recovery,” in a press conference today at Town Hall in Farmingville. Supervisor Foley said his historic budget, the first realistic budget in recent history, eliminates inherited budget deficits and insures the stability of the town’s financial future.
The 2007 budget provides a road map to recovery by:
- Reinstating the general fund property tax at an historically reduced level after two years of the “tax holiday” gimmick that depleted the town’s surplus
- The Supervisor emphasized that the general fund tax rate will be less than it was in 2003 and 2004. The 2007 tentative tax rate is a real reduction from the previous rate. The 2007 rate represents a 13 percent reduction over what a full reinstatement would be, including inflation.
- That tax holiday not only depleted the surplus, it put the town on the road to deficit and threatened the town’s bond rating. If the town’s revenue and spending trends had continued unabated, the General Fund surplus would have been completely depleted in two years.
- The tentative 2007 budget is the first Brookhaven Town budget to accurately account for contractual expenses and fixed costs, at a level of $172 million in expenditures. More than 80% of these expenditures are for mandated and fixed costs, including employee benefits, contractual salary costs, debt service, gas/energy costs, other contractual costs and operation of the town’s landfill. A total of 17 percent of the expenditures are for government operating/contractual and human services costs.
- Just 1 percent of expenditures is for new staff and initiatives.
“This budget represents a transformative turnaround for Brookhaven Town,” said Supervisor Foley. This budget is a pledge to stabilize our town’s finances and deliver improved citizen service. This budget provides a road map to recovery.
“This is the most open and transparent budget document that Brookhaven has ever seen—the days of smoke and mirrors are over. By presenting an honest budget, we hope to restore our government’s contract with the citizens of Brookhaven. This document fulfills my pledge to protect the taxpayers by tackling the tough choices we face with a refreshing dose of truth in budgeting.
“My tentative budget provides a comprehensive plan to resolve the inherited structural imbalances and deficits we discovered. Now is the time to summon the courage to right the financial ship of this town, wipe out deficits and build a strong foundation for our future.
“We have brought a new level of scrutiny to the budget process, scouring every line item for savings. We’ve asked the tough questions and we’re not afraid to make the tough choices necessary to put our town’s finances on the road to recovery. We will stop the avalanche of hidden deficits that we inherited and end tax gimmicks while proposing a real reduction in the property tax rate.”
Supervisor Foley pointed out one critical area of the budget—the creation of a Division of Capital Engineering specifically mandated with managing capital projects. In the past, there has been no real budgeting for capital projects and no effective project management. As a result, capital projects have for years routinely soared over budget.
The budget also used tough budgeting practices to eliminate structural deficits.
- The numerous departments sought more than $190 million in expenditures in 2007, requesting over 350 new positions. That was a result of under-funding for numerous departments over a period of years. However, those funding requests were substantially pared back.
- This budget eliminates the $15.3 million in deficits recently discovered in an examination of the existing 2006 budget, without imposing massive tax hikes. This budget prevents the general fund from going into deficit and prevents a threat to the town’s bond rating and long term financial stability by ending the temporary tax holiday gimmick and reinstating the general fund tax at a rate lower than the 2003 and 2004 tax rates.
The budget also makes substantial cuts, including:
- Cutting $1 million in funded but vacant positions.
- Ending benefits for part-time bingo inspectors.
- Eliminating salary increases for elected officials.
- Examining the consolidation of the Department of Aviation and Transportation, which would eliminate four exempt positions.
- Every line of the budget was scrutinized, and overtime, out of title, supplies, equipment, contractual and other costs were all cut.
There are a number of important initiatives, including:
- Hiring more code enforcement officers to address quality of life issues that are critical to residents.
- Creating a Division of Capital Engineering specifically mandated with managing capital projects and curing the chronic problems with mismanaged capital projects regularly soaring over budget.
- Implementing changes to correct deficiencies identified in years of audit findings, findings that were routinely ignored.
“We have created an open, honest, transparent budget that scrutinizes spending and protects taxpayers’ long-term stability,” concluded Supervisor Foley.
Click Here to view 2007 Tentative Budget Narratives
Click Here to view Supervisor's Statement
Download The 2007 Budget (pdf) Documents
Brookhaven Town Supervisor Brian X. Foley, left, and Highway Superintendent John Rouse explained the proposed 2007 Brookhaven Town budget at a press conference Friday afternoon in Brookhaven Town Hall.
Office of the Supervisor
One Independence Hill • Farmingville • NY 11738 • Phone (631) 451-6955 • Fax (631) 451-6677