New York State Budget Impact on Cattaraugus County
By Kathleen Kellogg

The weeks and months of wondering are over for Cattaraugus County officials who have been anticipating the adoption of the 2009-2010 New York State budget.

The $131.8 billion New York State budget was accepted by the state Senate April 3 and, beefed up with funds authorized in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA), is an 8.7 percent increase over the 2008-2009 spending level.

Cattaraugus County Administrator Jack Searles, who briefed lawmakers on April 1 as to various aspects of the state’s funding of certain county activities, said April 8 that the outlook remains essentially unchanged since that time.

“The biggest impact will be felt in new taxes,” Searles said, pointing to an estimated $7 billion increase in that area. He has relied on projections and analyses from the New York State Association of Counties to prepare legislators for spending adjustments that will have to be made at the local level.

Most county residents will feel the pinch when doing business with the County Clerk’s office. Searles said the new budget provisions will hike state revenues in the form of 25 percent increases in fees for auto registrations, vanity plates and driver’s licenses by 25 percent.

Specifically real property transfer fees at deed recording will send $9 per transaction to the county, but fees will rise: from $75 to $125 for residential or farm property and from $165 to $250 for commercial.

Drivers will be asked to cough up a $10 fee to replace their license plates in the coming year and they will also see steeper fees when paying mortgage taxes and other fees during the transfer of property. Also, cigarette and beer consumers will see taxes increase by one percent to eight percent; and, state lawmakers failed to approve the sale of wine in grocery stores, pleasing Cattaraugus County lawmakers who opposed that option.

The Middle Class Star Rebate program (not administered by the county) is ended and there are two new state income tax brackets. Those in the “marginal” state income tax category earning more than $200,000 will see their rate increase from 6.85 percent to 7.85 percent to pay higher personal income taxes. This increase will also affect head-of-household filers making more than $250,000 and married couples with incomes greater than $300,000. All taxpayers making more than $500,000, regardless of filing status, will see the rate increase to 8.97 percent.

The County’s Pines Nursing Homes in Olean and Machias will be harmed by new Medicaid reimbursement savings built into the plan. Four funding schemes will save the state more than $400 million, lowering public nursing facilities’ reimbursements.

The Pines Health Care and Rehabilitation Center in Machias will see an estimated $349,000 less funding and the Olean Pines will see $368,800 cut, perhaps partly due to a switch in April 2010 to a regional system of pricing on nursing home reimbursements to counties. Some of the reductions will be made up in other offsets.

General Medicaid reimbursements caps will not be harmed, however, and allows a three percent increase totaling $183 million  to counties in 2009. Two lump sum payments under the federal stimulus package have been received as part of an enhanced Medicaid reimbursement, but this months begins a slight reduction in other monthly payments to counties. 

While CHIPS and Marchiselli funds have been restored using the ARRA, bottle bill revenues will rise by another $115 million, some of which may find its way back to Cattaraugus County for municipal recycling. Local government efficiency grants appropriations are included in the budget and revenue sharing for cities, towns and villages are to remain at 2008 levels.

Among the numerous other possible impacts that would come with the passage by the Senate of the Budget, the Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Department budget may lose revenue due to a provision eliminating jail inmate housing reimbursements and the Probation Department reimbursements will be reduced. But additional stimulus funding will be provided as a partial offset for probation departments’ increased costs related to drug sentencing reforms. Local Conditional Release Commissions will be reauthorized as a tool to help control local inmate populations, but the local impact of this change is not yet determined.

. Also, the state will take a surcharge from all IDA-induced loans and, in another area, will reduce to six percent the PILOT payments made by the state, while Empire Zone certifications will see new criteria. Local Empire Zone administrative funding will be eliminated and the Empire Zone program sunset date will come a year earlier, on June 30, 2010.

The Legislature’s Finance Committee will soon begin discussions on how to adjust programming to accommodate these changes,