Voting against the tax increase were Council members Robert Paladino and Pat Vetere. Paladino has long been critical of the practice of dipping into the Town’s fund balance for the purposes of covering additional spending. He noted that  Standard & Poor's recent downgrade of Harrison’s General Obligation (GO) bonds were proof that changes were necessary to improve its overall fiscal health.

“Our taxpayers are burdened year after year because of the current fiscal policies of this administration,” said Paladino. “The Town’s financial position has deteriorated, and the downgrading of our bond status is a sign that we need to rein in spending and stop spending our surplus to balance our budget.” 

Paladino pointed out that the 7.4% tax increase Harrison residents will face in 2007 is out of step with communities throughout Westchester and is almost double the rate of many of the neighboring communities.

“In 2007, Mamaroneck Village will see a 3.97% increase and Rye Town – 3.3%,” said Paladino. “It’s time we take a different approach to budgeting and start exercising more financial discipline so that we’re not facing another large tax increase in 2008.”

As a first step toward getting the Town on better fiscal ground, Paladino suggested that the council focus on  maintaining the fund balance at current levels so that monies are available for emergencies. He has called on his colleagues to stop relying on one-shot revenue streams when they budget and to get a handle on overtime expenditures for municipal employees, which is estimated at nearly $800,000 over budget in the 2006 fiscal year.

 “The 2007 budget is a wake-up call,” Paladino continued. “We need to get serious about our budget, and we need to put mechanisms in place that will provide relief from these yearly tax increases. This is not a tax increase that the residents of Harrison deserve and certainly not one that I can support in its current form.”