Budget analysis shows $1.3M in cuts

YATES COUNTY--The 2016 Yates County preliminary budget shows a decrease in the total revenues and expenses. The preliminary budget expenditures for 2016 total $41,427,313, which is $1,313,103 less than the 2015 budget, indicating a 3.07 decrease in overall expenditures. However, because the county has recorded a 4.19 percent increase in the value of taxable property, the effective tax rate per county taxpayer will decline by 2.61 percent. Tax levy is the total amount of taxes that need to be collected, while the tax rate is the individual dollar rate per $1,000 of assessed value of a property used to calculate an annual tax bill.
When it comes to the county's expenses, some of the larger reductions are in economic assistance and the road fund, while increases come in areas like road machinery and public safety. Some of the largest changes to the county's expenditures include:
• A $947,641 (7.94 percent) decrease in economic assistance.
• A $487,479 (8.87 percent) decrease in the road fund.
• A $270,000 (11.74 percent) decrease in education.
• A $192,688 (20.33 percent) increase in road machinery.
• A $109,903 (1.22 percent) increase in public safety.
• A $102,352 (3.66 percent) increase in health.
• A $54,200 (3.14 percent) decrease in debt service.
• A $53,187 (17.42 percent) increase in transfers.
On the revenue side of things, the county's total 2016 revenue is projected to be $23,961,684. This is a $760,633 decrease from 2015, or 3.08 down. Some of the largest changes to the county's revenues include:
• A $433,067 (19.97 percent) decrease in charges for services.
• A $297,548 (4.37 percent) decrease in state aid.
• A $293,324 (8.01 percent) in federal aid.
• A $213,000 (1.86 percent) increase in non-property taxes.
• A $50,306 (8.13 percent) increase in property tax items.
Budget Officer Winona Flynn also highlighted on a few other areas of the budget, which included the cost of employment in the county. She said the proposed 2016 budget includes a 3 percent salary increase as negotiated by the CSEA Collective Bargaining Agreement. Flynn noted a 2 percent raise plus FICA costs totaling $53,465 has been added to the 2016 contingent fund budgeted amount pending the legislature's decision whether the non-union employees will receive raises in 2016. She said the average pension rates charged by the New York State Retirement System have declined from 18.2 percent in 2015 to 15.5 percent for 2016. However, the health insurance rate for premiums is projected to increase 18.1 percent. The Health Reimbursement Account for the non-union employees has been funded at $500 for a single policy and $2,000 for all other policies totaling $34,500.
For capital investment, Flynn mentioned the proposed 2016 budget includes all expenditures approved in the county's Capital Improvement Plan totaling $2,992,712.
In individual departments, public health includes $14,500 to relocate offices on the second floor of the county office building. The road machinery fund includes the capital improvement plan request for trucks for $89,000 and a tandem dump truck for $232,000. Flynn also said there is a reduced cost in the Department of Social Services due to a reduction in the projection of children in foster care. She added the recommended funding for currently funded agencies shows no increase.