Yonkers, NY budget balance 2009

Proposed 7.8% property tax increase will help preserve city services

There is an proposed 7.8% property tax increase that will help preservce city services and get the deficit as well. In the spending plan for $903.3 millions , 1.18% total increase in spending over last years's . The major is trying to avoid several hundred jobs cut crucial city and school programs.

"We're in a recession and just as families and businesses across Yonkers are doing, we had to find ways to cut back and we have. Yonkers now has a balanced budget, but it's one that avoids the kind of cuts in education and other services that would have decimated this city," Amicone said at his budget briefing to members of the City Council at City Hall on Wednesday.

Here are the Budget Highligts.

• $903.3 million total budget (1.18 % increase over FY 2009)
  • $419.2 million municipal budget (1.95% increase over FY 2009)
  • $484 million public school budget (0.52% increase over FY 2009)
• $105.7 million projected budget gap closed
• No layoffs and no further reductions to core city or school services
• Eliminates 11 vacant positions: smaller workforce than in 2004
• Lowest total and percentage spending increase in last six years
• Discretionary spending reduced by 5.6%, nearly $1 million
• Includes funding for new class of 50 police officers to fill retirement vacancies
• Includes funding for new class of 25 firefighters to fill retirement vacancies
• Proposed 7.8% increase in property taxes (avg. increase of $552 per homeowner)

Deficit Reduction Summary:

Bottom line the major is again going after Yonkers property taxes. The mayor is also contribution to the Yonkers public schools for 218.8 Millions,more per student ($ 9, 061) than any other large city in New York State.