Suffolk County Town supervisors gathered at Brookhaven Town Hall on Monday to petition Albany over what they call “unfunded mandates” amid property tax pressures. New York State fiscal policy dominated the discussion.
At a bipartisan press conference attended by Supervisors representing six towns across Suffolk County, they said local governments cannot be held responsible for controlling property taxes while absorbing costs they lack the authority to set.
Local governments have been stifled by the allowable levy growth factor, which is limited to 2%, while the New York State Comptroller calculated the 2027 inflation factor at 3.13%, according to the supervisors. The allowable levy growth factor is the amount by which local governments may increase their real property tax levies: either two percent or inflation, whichever is less.
Municipalities encounter many challenges in delivering essential services amid rising costs. Pension obligations, healthcare costs, retirement benefit changes, LIPA (Long Island Power Authority)-owned properties, solid-waste management, employee benefits, court-ordered expenses, and state mandates were all highlighted as the fiscal reality.
“For the past several years, we have been cutting where we can from our budgets. Piercing the tax cap this year was publicly predicted by me for several years; anyone surprised by this has not been paying attention,” said Ed Smyth, Huntington Town Supervisor.
The Supervisors discussed the existing tax-cap formula, which restricts discretionary spending but uses up most of the allowable growth before the Town Board considers funding essential services like roads, sanitation, and public safety.
Ed Wehrheim, Smithtown Town Supervisor, said the town is already $1.2 million over the amount allowed under the cap.
“We did not pierce the cap until last year, and we did that by taking care of the town fiscal matters and the budget as best we could, but I will tell you here today at this press conference that is no longer possible, not in the town of Smithtown,” Wehrheim said.
In a joint letter, the Supervisors requested a constructive meeting with Gov. Kathy Hochul and other State lawmakers to discuss adjusting the tax-cap formula and reducing the financial burden that municipalities are legally obligated to assume.
“Each town is in a different situation per se, but we all share the same common goals, and we all have some variation of these same issues,” Daniel Panico, Brookhaven Town Supervisor, said.
The letter notes a potential starting point: applying the same flexibility already available at other levels of government, such as school districts. Under State law, school districts are granted certain exemptions. However, the letter focuses entirely on collaboration.
Six of the attending Town supervisors signed the letter. The Town Supervisors of East Hampton, Shelter Island, Babylon, and Southampton did not attend but also signed the letter.
The governor’s office pushed back on the Supervisors’ messaging.
“The property tax cap is a critical protection for homeowners, especially now when Washington’s tariffs and inflationary policies are driving up costs for families across New York,” said Gordon Tepper, Hochul’s Long Island Press Secretary. “Governor Hochul has provided more support to local governments than any other governor and brought middle-class taxes to their lowest levels in nearly 70 years. Elected officials across the state should be looking for ways to control costs, not asking homeowners to pay more,” said Tepper.
