Full Transcript

Thank you. Good morning, everybody. Today is September 24th, 2026. We are here for a special town board meeting. If we could stand and say the pledge together. Councilman Curran, would you lead us, please? Sure. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

So as our town clerk today, I would like to do the special board meeting to present our 2027 tentative budget. And I would ask if our town clerk would at this time please present the budget.

Thank you very much. Thank you. Oops. Thank you.

So I'd like to say before I read the official letter, I'd like to say we did it. And what I mean by that is the department heads, my fellow elected officials, every single town of Riverhead employee that shows up every day and works to make Riverhead awesome. The it is the impossible that people said, but we were able to. We will not be piercing the tax cap of this tentative budget, but it also includes 76 merit raises, nine promotional raises, six new full-time positions, two new part-time positions. and along with that 510 active employees, I would just like to speak to you. I want to express how thankful I am and how lucky I get to be and each and every one of you to work with on your hard work every day and the team that you bring together. The growth and the joy of your daily work through the environment, the team approach that you tackle things with, providing essential and quality of life infrastructure, programs and resources that our friends, our neighbors, and the taxpayers need and deserve. Thank you, and I hope that all of us can agree and we can work together and that this tentative budget will be a collective win for the town of Riverhead and the residents. So with that said, I would like to read the official opening letter. It is in the beginning there for the board members. As Supervisor and Chief Financial Officer of the town of Riverhead, in accordance with Section 106 of the New York State Law, I humbly present for your consideration the 2027 tentative operating budget. There is a joy in presenting this budget as all taxing districts are budgeted within the tax cap of 2.79. The 2027 general fund tentative budget adds 2.9 million in expenditures, which equals approximately 28 cents per day for property valued at 800,000. Residential waste will only increase less than one cent a day, and we will maintain the great service to you, the taxpayer. Total appropriations for the Town Operating Fund for 2027 are $116,864,850, with a stable growth of $4,142,096 over the 2026. This year, we are able to offer a retirement incentive that yielded $819,000 in savings directly to the General Fund for 2027. Three CSEA members and seven PBA members chose to take the retirement incentive, and we are so proud of each of them for their years of service they gave to the people of Riverhead. Through this incentive, we realized a $746,000 reduction in salaries and payroll taxes and a $341,000 reduction in New York State retirement contributions. That savings was partially offset by an increase in retirement health insurance to give us a total realized savings of $819,000 in 2027. The 2027 tentative budget also includes a $300,000 reduction, a fund balance contribution to the general fund. In 2023, the sitting supervisor added $2 million from fund balance to balance the budget. That is a hole that we must continue to dig out of for a stronger future, and this budget addresses it. Salaries, benefits, retirement, and training and payroll continues to lead our appropriations for 2027, but I believe those associated costs are a strong investment for you, the taxpayer, because of the work and services provided by our employees. Since taking office, the message I have heard loud and clear is the Town of Riverhead struggles to attract and retain employees due to low entry-level pay. The 2027 tentative budget helps address this issue by moving 46 of those employees up two steps in a salary scale to increase retention in our seniors, highway, and buildings and grounds departments. In total, 76 merit raises, including 64 above, 9 promotional raises, 6 new full-time positions, as well as 2 new part-time positions are budgeted while remaining under the 2.79 tax cap. Together, we did it. I am honored for this opportunity to present this tentative budget that represents the hard work and dedication of so many. This was accomplished by listening to our employees' cost-saving ideas and working with them to see those ideas implemented and become a reality. Through additional meetings with department heads and town board liaisons, each department was thoroughly reviewed. The goal of this tentative budget is clear, provide financial relief for taxpayers while bolstering opportunities for increased employee retention at the lower end of our pay scale. I believe this budget addresses both those goals, and I want to thank our financial administrator, department heads, town board liaisons, and staff for their tireless work on this budget. Respectfully submitted, Jerry Halpin. So with that presentation, I would like to ask for a motion to close the special meeting and go into work session. I'll make a motion. Second. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed?