2007 town budget totals $112 million
Tax rate to decrease 3 percent
by JESSICA L. FINCH Associate Editor

Amherst Supervisor Satish Mohan reported last week that the 2007 budget will be approximately $112 million with a 3 percent tax rate decrease.

The Town Board did not vote on the budget before the midnight deadline on Nov. 20 thus the preliminary spending plan took effect.

That included Mohan's $110 million tentative budget plus all amendments recorded before the deadline.

Although the tax rate is reportedly going down, residents who had their assessment increased will be paying more per thousand. Mohan said this affects 10,439 homes.

Basically, a house assessed at $100,000 will be paying $30 less than last year. The average increase in the assessments was 9 percent, which would put most of those 10,439 residents at a 6 percent tax rate increase.

"There were so many resolutions, I did not know what passed or failed," Mohan said about the Nov. 20 meeting where the budget was not adopted before the midnight deadline.

He added that perhaps a live spreadsheet - as money was added back in due to resolutions - would have mediated the problem.

In 2007 the town will be collecting $1 million more from residents than in 2006, but with increases in revenue and use of the surplus, the tax rate is still less than the current year. The town is also be using $2.6 million from the surplus to balance next year's budget.

The three-and-a-half-hour budget conversation at Monday's meeting was not enough time to finalize a budget.

"I did not know it would take more than five hours (the meeting started at 7 p.m.) or we would have started earlier," Mohan said, adding that he and council members had requested last-minute amendment changes.

Also, five public hearings were scheduled in addition to an hour of resident comments.

Mohan said missing the deadline was the same result as if the board had taken a vote to adopt the budget.

The next Town Board meeting will be at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 4 at Town Hall, 5583 Main St.

In other board news, the board held two public hearings about street parking near Daemen College on Main Street. The board approved the following changes: parking is restricted from Sept. 1 to May 1 on the north side of Meadowstream Drive from Getzville Road to No. 64 Meadowstream Drive between the hours of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Also, parking is restricted from the eastside of Getzville Road from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays between Elmhurst Road and Meadowstream Drive.

Also approved was a resolution to conserve energy in town buildings, including reducing the thermostat settings to at least 68 degrees Fahrenheit during the day and 65 degrees at night.

e-mail: jfinch@beenews.com