Woodbury should get a bigger share of the pot!

Orange County has a $43 million surplus in the bank


Orange County’s unappropriated fund balance carried over from last year is $43 million and that is not excessive, County Executive Edward Diana said yesterday. The county’s outside accounting firm, Bennett and Kielson provided a report to county legislators yesterday.

Diana, a Republican, said despite what Democratic county lawmakers are saying the surplus is not too big; however, he wants to use it to the county’s advantage. “Putting my budget together starting next week for 2006 we are certainly going to look at another property tax cut to give the property tax residents here another reduction,” he said. “I am sure we can do something.”

Democratic county legislator Jeffrey Berkman said his party has been calling for the cut all along. “We urge a property tax to be considered right now,” he said.

Legislator Thomas Pahucki, a Democrat, said the surplus is too great. “ Orange County government is a not-for-profit; we are not a profitable entity,” he said. “Unlike other businesses, we only tax what we need to run our programs, run our system.”

Democrat Wayne Decker said the trouble is the county’s whole system of budget analysis needs to be changed.