Budget Impact on Counties

“The facts are clear. The Governor’s Budget is a net win for county governments, which will see their revenues increase by over $500 million in one year alone as a result of State mandate relief and other actions proposed in the Executive Budget.  The idea that somehow county governments will be forced to raise property taxes to cover what is a net positive impact from our State budget represents nothing more than a red herring.  Should county executives carry through on their threat to raise property taxes, they will be doing so because of their own choices and their own judgments, not because of a State budget that amounts to a net win for their fiscal books.  Even the worst-case scenario expressed by county advocates, which contradicts all of our facts to date, can’t be a justification for raising property taxes given how small a percentage the impact would be of their total revenues as well as of their discretionary spending growth.”  

Net Positive Impact to Counties

• Despite increasingly challenging fiscal times, and despite having to reduce State revenue projections by nearly $650 million since the Executive Budget was first released, Counties still come out ahead in our Budget.
• Even when discounting the benefits of the Medicaid Cap and the Family Health Plus Takeover (which saves counties $393 million in 2009 alone), Spitzer’s budget has a net positive impact on counties of $129 million in 2009.
  • Attachment 1: Explanation of Budget initiatives with major county impacts
  • Attachment 2: Statistical breakdown of Budget impacts on each county

Put in Perspective, Even Counties’ Biggest Complaints have a Relatively Small Impact

• Even when combining the impacts from the Youth Detention Reimbursement Change and the Public Assistance Reimbursement change – NYSAC’s two biggest complaints (-$38 million) – the combined effect is just -0.3% of their total revenues ($13 billion). 
  • Attachment 3: Statistical breakdown of Budget impacts compared to the total revenues of each county
• Even when compared to the total county property tax revenue, the negative impact is just -0.9%.
  • Attachment 4: Statistical breakdown of Budget impacts compared to the total property tax revenues of each county

Counties Threaten to Raise Taxes Despite Discretionary Spending Growth Rate of 7.7%

• The annual average growth in discretionary county expenditures from 2003-2006 (most recent data available) was 7.7% (after factoring out mandated costs such as health care, public assistance and education).
  • Attachment 5: County-by-County breakdown of discretionary spending growth from 2003-2006

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