4th Consecutive Year of Tax Reductions in Molinaro’s 2018 County Budget Proposal
Commitment to Strong Local Economy and County Government Fiscal Stability

Poughkeepsie… Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro has announced his 2018 Executive Budget, to be released on October 31st, will again cut the amount collected in the property tax levy as well as reduce the property tax rate paid by taxpayers. This will be the fourth consecutive year of reduction in the County’s property tax levy, keeping Dutchess County under the New York State (NYS) property tax cap every year since the cap was enacted in 2011.

County Executive Molinaro said, “I am committed to reducing the burden on property taxpayers. In partnership with the County Legislature awe have strengthened the county's fiscal position and made county government more efficient and effective in the delivery of core services. The 2018 budget will provide critical services for residents while lowering county taxes."

As required by the NYS Property Tax legislation, Dutchess County Commissioner of Finance Heidi Seelbach has completed Dutchess County’s preliminary 2018 property levy tax cap calculation, a multi-point calculation formula provided by the New York State Comptroller’s Office that can be viewed online. For 2018, the property tax levy growth limit for Dutchess County Government is calculated to be $4.2 million or 3.98%. “Although we can raise the property tax levy by several million dollars and still remain under the tax cap, our 2018 budget will have a lower tax levy than last year, and homeowners and businesses can again expect a lower property tax rate as well,” said County Executive Molinaro.

County Executive Molinaro noted that growth in the local economy has been an important component in lowering property taxes while maintaining and expanding services for residents. Dutchess County’s total assessed valuation has increased every year for the past three years to $30 billion for 2018. The local economy has been strengthened by the work of the Th!nk Dutchess Alliance for Business through the Local Development Corporation (LDC) and Industrial Development Agency (IDA). IDA and LDC projects valued at more than $1.3 billion in investment have retained 1,761 jobs, created 744 new full-time jobs and 975 construction jobs for 2017. The 2018 Executive Budget makes a continued investment of more than $450,000 for the Th!nk Dutchess Alliance for Business to expand its award-winning marketing campaign, business expansion and recruitment efforts, Innovation Challenge, and more.

Commitment to fiscal stability is also having a positive impact on the 2018 Executive Budget. The rebuilding of Dutchess County Government’s fund balance over the past several years has helped secure the County’s strong AA+ bond rating and has enabled the establishment of a Taxpayer Protection Fund to ensure tax stability for property taxpayers for the next several budget cycles as well as a Capital Set Aside fund to reduce indebtedness. The Taxpayer Protection Fund will be utilized to reduce property taxes for 2018, and the Capital Set Aside fund has helped the County to reduce debt service costs by $1.8 million in 2018.

Dutchess County Legislature Chairman Dale Borchert said, “I am very encouraged we can again deliver a tax reduction to our residents and businesses while enhancing and expanding services in 2018. Our commitment to fiscal stability and smart investments in our community is certainly paying dividends. I look forward to County Executive Molinaro’s 2018 Budget presentation next week; and while there is a great deal of work ahead for the Legislature as we begin the budget review process, we are clearly on the right path for a strong 2018 in Dutchess County.”

Actual impact of the property tax levy and tax rate decrease on an individual tax bill can vary from town to town based on local assessments and state equalization rates, both factors beyond the County’s control. Dutchess County Government’s property tax levy represents only 12% of the property taxes collected countywide, the remainder of which is comprised of school taxes, municipal (city, town or village) property taxes and special district taxes (i.e. fire).

County Executive Molinaro will present his 2018 Executive Budget on Tuesday, October 31st at 11am in the Legislature Chambers, ahead of the required November 1st deadline established by the Dutchess County Administrative Code. The County Executive’s Budget Address can be viewed live on the County’s website, where all budget documents will also be available for review. On November 2nd at 6:30pm, County Executive Molinaro will host a countywide tele-town hall forum when residents will have the opportunity to participate in a live conversation about the 2018 county budget, learn key details, ask questions and share feedback. Additionally, there will be town hall forum events about the 2018 Executive Budget held throughout the county in the month of November.