The Smithtown Town Board held a public hearing Thursday on a proposed local law that would let the town override the state's property tax cap for 2027, hearing from several residents opposed to further tax increases before voting to close the hearing.
Supervisor Wehan told the board the town's tentative budget calls for piercing the cap because unfunded state mandates total 5.2 million dollars while the town can raise only 1.6 million dollars in property taxes and stay under the cap. "The unfunded mandates that came down from Albany right now are 5.2 million," he said.
Wehan said last year's levy increase was about 9 percent and that this year's proposed increase has been cut to roughly half that, with an estimated $94 increase on the average Smithtown home if the cap is pierced. He said a public hearing on the budget itself is scheduled for Nov. 3 at 7 p.m. at the senior center, and that the board will not vote on the budget until after residents are heard there.
Resident Randy Weiner cited county and state data on Smithtown's property tax burden and said the town had raised taxes well above the inflation rate. "Last year, you raised our taxes by 10%. The inflation rate has gone up 0.7% and you are opposing raising my taxes again," he said.
Another speaker, Truviano O'Keefe, said rising costs were already straining residents and urged the board to look for savings elsewhere before raising taxes. "Reckless tax rise will hurt us all," she said.
Resident Bob Soto argued that state lawmakers, not the town, should be held responsible for unfunded pension and health care mandates driving up local budgets. Erwin Eisen, who gave his address as 17 Horseshoe Lane, said he objected to the introduction of the tax cap override law and questioned spending increases in the proposed budget.
Earlier in the meeting the board closed four public hearings on proposed fee and inspection changes to the town's building and fire codes covering liquefied-petroleum-gas piping systems, including a proposed $50 fee for LPG installation permits. None of the related local laws were voted on during the meeting.
The board scheduled public hearings for Nov. 19 on extending the town's moratorium on battery energy storage systems, on a nuisance-abatement action against a St. James property, and on the 2027 community development program.
In a separate resolution list, the board authorized legal counsel to investigate and pursue action against the owners of a property at 131 Old North Port Road in Kings Park, approved emergency demolition and site-safety work at a Main Street property in Kings Park, and authorized legal action against an insurance company over coverage in a pending lawsuit against the town.