Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone has called a special meeting of the legislature for Tuesday, July 28 at 2:30 p.m., to consider and vote on IR 1413, which would allow a larger portion of county sales tax revenues to be directed to the county’s taxpayer trust fund rather than the environmental trust fund for a three-year period.
The meeting will be held via Zoom and include a one-hour public portion.
IR 1413 requires voter approval, and a positive vote would place the measure on the ballot in November. The special meeting is necessary in order to get the measure on the ballot.
Earlier this week, the legislature passed IR 1414, which will allow residents to vote on the transfer of excess funds from the Sewer Assessment Stabilization Reserve Fund to the Suffolk County Taxpayers Trust Fund to provide property tax protection. IR 1414 must also be approved by voters in November.
“I applaud the legislature for standing with taxpayers and essential employees this week by passing resolution 1414, which will give the public the right to vote on tax stabilization and budget mitigation,” Bellone said.
“Now we must also adopt resolution 1413, which will help protect taxpayers and essential employees from the worst impacts of the financial emergency caused by COVID-19,” he said.
On April 17, Bellone announced the creation of a Fiscal Impact Task Force due to the COVID-19 outbreak. This task force brought together a group of financial experts from across the region that were charged with conducting an independent review of the county’s multi-year plan and determining the fiscal impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on it. The task force considered three possible scenarios that could occur given the uncertainty of the pandemic and overall economy.
The report concludes that in the best case scenario, Suffolk County will be forced to close a budget gap of more than $1.1 billion in the next 14 months. In the worst case scenario that factors in a potential second wave and business closures, Suffolk County could face a staggering $1.5 billion total shortfall over a similar time period.
“Our first responders, healthcare workers, grocery store employees, and all other essential workers carried us through this crisis and should not now be forced to bear the burden of the financial hardships this pandemic has caused,” Bellone said.
“While we need federal disaster assistance to recover, we must also adopt common sense budget mitigation measures like this one to protect taxpayers and county employees from the damage of this unprecedented financial emergency,” Bellone said.
The survival of local journalism depends on your support.
We are a small family-owned operation. You rely on us to stay informed, and we depend on you to make our work possible. Just a few dollars can help us continue to bring this important service to our community.
Support RiverheadLOCAL today.