East Hampton Town’s preliminary budget for the 2024 fiscal year includes new expenditures and a 5.3-percent increase over 2023. The town’s budget officer detailed final modifications to a $95.46 million document for the fiscal year that starts on Jan. 1, 2024, at a public hearing last Thursday that drew no comments.
Rebecca Hansen, the budget officer, told the board that $236,000 in expenditures had been added to the tentative budget. The new total’s 5.3-percent increase over the adopted 2023 budget is up slightly from the 5.256-percent increase in the tentative plan. The preliminary budget remains under the New York State-mandated 2-percent property tax levy cap by just over $7,700, down from $41,485 in the tentative budget. The total amount to be raised by taxes is “just over $60.4 million,” she said.
Changes from the tentative to the preliminary budget that the board agreed to “have a minimal impact on tax rates,” Ms. Hansen said. Those living outside an incorporated village will see a tax rate increase of 1.5 percent, which under the tentative budget was a 1.6-percent increase. For those living inside a village, the tax rate increase will be 8 percent, up from 7.9 percent under the tentative budget.
As an illustration, Ms. Hansen said that a property with a market value of just over $1 million would see a tax increase of about $20 if outside an incorporated village and $40 if inside one.
The 2024 salaries for elected officials were listed in the public hearing notice. The supervisor will be compensated at $137,157.59 per year. Four town board members will each be paid $86,504.76 per year. Each of two town justices will be paid $100,180 per year.
Annual compensation for both the town clerk and the superintendent of highways will be $115,946.88. The chairperson of the board of assessors will be paid $110,431.06, and each of two town assessors will be paid $99,919.81.
The clerk of the town trustees will be compensated at $29,694.22 per year, each of two deputy clerks will be paid $25,066.37 per year, and the other six trustees will each be paid $11,865.46 per year.
The tentative budget revealed that many of the spending increases in the 2024 budget are related to personnel. Ms. Hansen told the board last month that 60.75 percent of the budget related to salaries and benefits. The budget includes promotions for 13 employees, adding around $100,000 in expenditures, Ms. Hansen said last month. Also proposed is the addition of a supervisory employee in the Ordinance Enforcement Department.
With no public comment last Thursday, the hearing was closed. A resolution to adopt the budget is scheduled for the board’s meeting next Thursday, four days ahead of the state-imposed deadline.
