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St. Lawrence County budget with 42-cent tax rate decrease adopted

Posted 12/6/22

BY JEFF CHUDZINSKI North Country This Week CANTON — St. Lawrence County Legislators officially adopted the county’s 2023 budget following a public hearing on Dec. 5 that cuts the tax rate by 42 …

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St. Lawrence County budget with 42-cent tax rate decrease adopted

Posted

BY JEFF CHUDZINSKI
North Country This Week

CANTON — St. Lawrence County Legislators officially adopted the county’s 2023 budget following a public hearing on Dec. 5 that cuts the tax rate by 42 cents despite a $1.4 million hike in the tax levy.

The true value tax rate is expected to decrease from $8.02 per $1,000 of assessed value to $7.60 per $1,000 of assessed value. That decrease would save a homeowner with an assessment of $100,000 around $41.79.

The tax levy would sit at $51.7 million, due in large part to the increase in property assessments and hot real estate market of the last year, officials say.

The tentative budget would also keep the county under the available tax cap of $52,702,104 by $1 million even, according to County Administrator Ruth Doyle.

Legislators were complimentary, congratulating Doyle and Department heads for crafting what many said is a well balanced budget that not only maintains services but allows the county to spend from the fund balance in a responsible manner.

Appropriations are slated to rise by $13.1 million, up to $273.7 million, which would be a 5% increase.

Revenue is also expected to continue to rise, with the 2023 tentative budget showing $221.9 million in revenue, an $11.9 million increase.

County costs will continue to rise, coming to $51.7 million in the 2023 budget. That increase is a difference of $1.4 million compared to 2022.

The applied fund balance will rise $351,000, coming to $601,630 as funds are rolled over from two separate accounts. Those funds will be used to offset county costs.

The $601,630 would represent a reinvestment by covering just over $291,000 in equipment purchases as part of the Solid Waste Enterprise Fund, as well as a $203,755 investment to cover half the cost of premium funds for the policy from the Health Insurance Reserve. Doyle said $106,625 would be used as part of a two-year implementation of the cost adjustment to offset the revenue from departments in the liability fund.

The general fund stands at $45.9 million.

The 2023 budget projects $71.6 million in sales tax collections, with $25.2 million for distribution to municipalities, though that figure can change, officials say.

Revenue adjustments for 2023 include a $372,000 drop in funding for the County Clerk through DMV assistance provided for downstate offices. A total of $2.6 million is projected to be collected, down from $3 million the year before.

Additional funding is expected to come to the county through a tobacco settlement, NYPA Highwater funds, sales tax collections, reimbursement from a drug subsidy, Pro-Act reimbursement and opioid settlements.

One change that came in recent weeks is the receipt of Tribal Compact Funds, with Doyle saying the county will receive funds from the fourth quarter of 2019 through the third quarter of 2021.

The funds total $2,380,770.60, of which $1,190,385 will go to the county.

According to Doyle, the towns of Brasher and Massena will receive $595,192.67.

Capital projects included in the budget include highway outpost construction, which are ongoing in Lisbon, Russell and Potsdam, as well as court house renovation, work at the county jail, technology upgrades to servers, EMS interoperability radio projects and a DSS satellite office in Massena.

Other projects listed in the planning phase include County Clerk office renovations, new court house windows, updates to the Sheriff’s House, warehouse renovations, relocation projects for the grounds department and DS building updates.

A $4.9 million contingency budget is also included, which also contained $544 for energy costs, including heating, fuel and utilities. For the capital reserve, $1 million has been budgeted which includes a number of information technology upgrades, licensing and security.

Around $1.2 million has been listed as un-targeted to ensure additional funding is available in the event rising costs impact budgets further.

Full-time equivalent employment is projected to be 864.67 in 2023, a rise of 25.3 positions compared to 2022. That trend continues the rise of staffing at the county level, rising consistently for the last 5 years from 788.95 to 864.67.

Positions added include three additional positions within DSS, which has been budgeted in, as well as seven new positions that are being added to the Sheriff’s Department.