At a Guilderland Town Board meeting Thursday, Nov. 9, the board adopted its budget for 2007, following a public hearing.
No residents spoke at the hearing, during which Supervisor Kenneth Runion highlighted some important parts of the budget.
The town board has been working very diligently since September, working and analyzing the town budget for 2007, said Runion.
The town’s general fund will not see an increase for the eighth straight year.
`The tax rate is remaining the same as last year, which is 25 cents per $1,000 of assessed value,` said Runion.
In a comment two weeks ago, Runion, who estimated the average cost of a home in the town to be about $180,000, said that the average resident would end up paying about $45 toward the general fund.
In what he called, a `maintenance-type` budget, Runion said town budget work sessions tended to focus on necessary maintenance and repairs.
`We have very limited new programs,` said Runion.
Runion said that, when developing the budget, departments are asked where they can cut costs if necessary, and the focus stays on the balance of keeping taxes low and the town’s maintenance levels up.
At the meeting, Runion said it was important to note that the budget is primarily funded through means other than property taxes, including $10 million in sales tax revenue and $1 million in mortgage tax revenue. By comparison, property taxes contribute a little more than $720,000 to the total budget.
Additionally, according to Runion, a separate item for voting costs has been added to the town’s tax bill as a result of changes instituted by the Help America Vote Act.
`This year the town has been advised that Albany County will be handling future elections,` said Runion. `This has resulted in a substantial increase in what the town has paid in the past.`
In the past, Runion said, the town had been more frugal in handling election costs than is the case with the new requirements instituted by the county.
Albany County election mandate costs for the budget would be 9.5 cents per $1,000 of assessed value.
In other business, the town appointed two members, Geoffrey Van Epps and Joe Abbruzzese, to a joint committee with the town of Princetown to study the Route 20 corridor from the Duanesburg town line to Route 158 in Guilderland.
`We applied through the (Capital District Transportation Committee) for a grant to conduct a study for that corridor,` said Runion.
The town would work with a committee from Princetown, which has three appointed members, to study the corridor. Guilderland is looking to add one more member to the committee to join Van Epps and Abbruzzese. A third person would be designated at a Tuesday, Nov. 21, meeting.
The town board also passed a resolution allowing the supervisor to apply for a grant application to the Quality Communities Grant Program for an open space inventory in the town.
`We would be applying for a grant of $44,000 against a cost of $55,000,` said Runion.
Runion said if the grant is approved, the town would look to find a consultant to conduct the inventory.
The town also scheduled two public hearings for Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m. and 7:45 p.m. to consider public input prior to the adoption of two local laws that would increase tax exemption limits for senior citizens and disabled people.“
