New York Comptroller Criticizes Rockland County Budget

New York Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli criticised Rockland County’s budget as overly optimistic, recommending adjustments to its assumptions about sales tax revenue and the cost of personel services among other items.

DiNapoli said the county’s 2013 budget anticipates $175 million in sales and use tax, 4% more than its fiscal 2012 budget, a total that is not supported by analysis, according to a statement from DiNapoli’s office. The 2013 budget appropriation of $158 million for personal services seems to be insufficient, and “county officials have consistently underestimated personal services costs in the past,” DiNapoli said in the statement.

Rockland County is located about two miles northwest of New York City and has about 315,000 residents. Its adopted 2013 budget of $751 million represents an increase of 2.5% from the fiscal 2012 plan. The county’s debt is rated BBB-minus by Standard & Poor’s and Baa3 by Moody’s Investors Service. The county’s legislature is required to prepare a plan of action that addresses DiNapoli’s recommendations within 90 days, according to the DiNapoli statement.

The county received $171 million in sales and use taxes from 2012, as opposed to $168.8 million, as it had originally believed,so it needs less of an increase to make $175 million, said Rockland County deputy budget director Steve Grogan. A new mall is opening in the fall and the county hopes to pull in $4 million from this property alone, he said.

The county board plans to vote on Tuesday night on an early retirement incentive program, Grogan said, responding to the concerns about personal services costs. Retiring employees would not be replaced. If passed, this program would save the county $4-to-$5 million by the end of the year, Grogan said.

Rockland has not made an allocation for uncollected taxes even though the county had an average of $2.2 million of uncollected taxes from 2008 to 2011, according to DiNapoli’s statement.

The county has $1.9 million in reserves set aside in the budget, Grogan responded. He said he thought this was close to $2.2 million.

DiNapolic also criticized  the county’s plan to sell $5 million in serial bonds to cover the costs of tax certiorari, saying “The continued practice of using debt to pay for operating costs is imprudent.”

Pfizer, which has a property in the county, successfully challenged the county town of Orangetown about its assessment. As a result, Grogan said, the town now has to pay Pfizer about $3 million a year.

New York State Finance Law requires the county government to reimburse towns for their lost property taxes in cases like this. The county could not afford to pay the Pfizer bill when combined with some others, Grogan said so it has been selling bonds.

Pfizer has received the $3 million refunds in 2011 and 2012 and will continue to receive them this year through 2015.

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
New York
MORE FROM BOND BUYER