East Hampton Town Reports Its Largest Surplus Ever

East Hampton Town finished 2016 firmly in the black with a positive balance of $29 million, a historic high, according to town officials.

The town's annual financial update, filed recently with the New York State comptroller, reflects an increase during 2016 in the standing fund balance, or surplus, in all of the town's major funds, of $6.7 million.

"The town has come a long way since those very difficult years in 2008 and 2009 when it fell into a $27 million deficit," Supervisor Larry Cantwell said at a board meeting on Tuesday.

To go from that deficit -- which the town had to cover by issuing bonds, under state legislative authority -- to a surplus of more than the deficit amount, was remarkable, Mr. Cantwell said. He called it a "testament to a lot of people's hard work," on a bipartisan basis, including town department heads and staff ,and Len Bernard, the town budget director,  and to "some good decision-making by boards."

The town's two major operating funds "were the two funds decimated eight years ago, but since then the general funds have gone from having a combined deficit of over $27 million to a combined surplus of over $21.7 million," Mr. Cantwell detailed in a release. A surplus has built up in the other major funds as well, the highway, sanitation, scavenger waste, and airport funds.

In order to build its financial standing and credit rating, the town had enacted a policy of achieving an end-of-year surplus of at least 20 percent in all the major funds, but the surplus in each fund at the close of last year surpassed 35 percent.

"The town has achieved its largest surplus ever and is in a very strong financial position," Mr. Cantwell stated in the release. "The town, in my opinion . . . has recovered from its financial crisis. . . ."

The airport fund surplus increased by more than $600,000 in 2016, ending the year at more than $1.8 million.

"The town board is keeping its commitment to maintaining a safe and economically viable airport without cost to taxpayers and without taking Federal Aviation Administration funds," said Councilwoman Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, the airport liaison, in the release. The "strong budget performance demonstrates that the town can invest in infrastructure and defend against litigation from the helicopter interests, more specifically the Friends of East Hampton Airport, and still make a robust contribution to fund balance."

The annual financial update document is the first report issued each year that provides a detailed picture of the town's financial performance for the previous fiscal year. It can be obtained from the town Finance Department, or seen on the town website, ehamptonny.gov. An annual independent audit will be released in late June.