Ontario County OKs $195 million budget
Ontario County lawmakers Thursday approved a 2010 budget that keeps the tax rate at its current level with a 2 percent reduction in county spending.
By a unanimous vote, the Ontario County Board of Supervisors approved a budget that calls for spending $194.7 million next year — about $4 million less than current levels.
Under the new budget, the tax rate will remain at $6.24 per $1,000 assessed value, which is the same as this year. Owners of a house valued at $100,000 could expect to pay a county property tax bill in the range of $624.
“It is a very difficult year,” said Manchester Supervisor Bill Eddinger, who is also the county’s budget officer.
In September, the sales tax in the county was raised from 7.125 cents to 7.5 cents on a dollar and is projected to generate almost $5 million in additional revenue next year. The additional revenue generated by this increase will help pay for major projects, which include a $62 million expansion of Finger Lakes Community College.
The rest of the county’s pot of sales tax revenue is, because of the economic downturn, projected to be 10 percent less than the amount the county had for this year’s budget — $29.2 million instead of the $32.5 million budgeted for 2009.
As recently as 2007, the sales tax revenue for county use grew by almost 7 percent.
About $9 million in county reserves will be needed to balance the 2010 budget. That’s still less than $10.7 million in reserves earmarked for bringing this year’s budget into balance. The county would still have about $40 million in reserves for future use, Eddinger said.
Lawmakers also unanimously reaffirmed a plan for $53.9 million in major projects budgeted for 2010. These expenditures include $33 million for Finger Lakes Community College.
In addition to beginning construction on the student services center, on FLCC’s main campus in the town of Hopewell, FLCC will open its satellite campus in Victor in January.
