Somers holds the line on taxes in preliminary 2026 budget

SOMERS, N.Y. - A public hearing on Somers’ preliminary 2026 budget has been left open until Wednesday, Dec. 10.

If passed as is, the approximately $18,213,299 million spending plan – exclusive of special districts such as water, sewer, and lighting -- would represent an increase of $446,591, or 2.5 percent, over the current $17,766,708.

Town finance director Robert Kehoe pointed out at the Town Board’s Nov. 20 meeting that Somers has retained its Triple-A credit rating from Moody’s Investor Service.

No member of the public spoke during part one of the hearing.

Supervisor Robert Scorrano noted then that while there were still a couple of weeks to go to “finetune” things such as salaries, it was still worth noting that Somers is managing to stay under “allowable” property tax levy increases by $118,341, or 1.36 percent.

This current fiscal year, it was below the cap by $258,663, or 2.99 percent.

Although he did not mention them by name, Scorrano said that other Westchester towns have had, or are preparing to, “bust” the tax cap.

That limit was set at 2 percent this summer by state Comptroller Thomas P. DeNapoli.

Municipalities can go over that amount based on certain factors and formulas.

(The available tax cap this year is $8,716,892; last year, it was $8,654,795.)

Legally, the town could have raised the levy by 4 percent, Kehoe said.

The $8,279,281 tax levy for 2026 represents a $202,000, or 2.5 percent, increase over the current $8,077,012.

“Since I’ve been doing this, we’ve never really taxed up to our full capacity and that’s saved the taxpayers a lot of money,” said Councilman Anthony Cirieco.

Kehoe estimated that that’s been about $2 million in savings spread over the past decade.

After Scorrano praised Kehoe and his team, the finance director credited department heads for keeping spending in check.

“They really do take it seriously,” he said of their diligent efforts.

To balance the budget, the town intends to use about $629,000 from its surplus funds, an increase of about $282,000 over last year’s appropriations.

If the budget passes as is, the tax rate in 2026 will be $16.63 per $1,000 of assessed valuation. Currently, that’s $16.25 per $1,000.

That translates to a total increase of about $21.87, or 2.3 percent, for a property that’s assessed by $650,000, Kehoe said.

SALARIES

These numbers could change, but at last glance, salaries for elected officials were going up by 3 percent across the board.

(Salary increases for employees will vary.)

Scorrano’s annual paycheck will rise to $144,200 from the present $140,000.

Each town councilperson will receive $16,366. Currently, that’s $15,889.

The Town clerk’s salary will be $107,773. This year it was $104,634.

There are two town justices. Each will be paid $46,831 in 2026 as opposed to $45,467.

However, the budget indicates that the salary for the town’s superintendent of highways will increase from $140,000 to $185,000, or about 32 percent.

That’s because, Cirieco explained, Nick DeVito is taking on extra added job responsibilities in areas of construction, mechanical/electrical/infrastructure support, tree management/vegetation control at town-owned properties, water safety and emergency response, worker safety planning, and capital projects oversight.

For instance, before any major capital projects go out to bid, the highway superintendent will be responsible for reviewing the plans, the scope, the site etc.

The intent is to “catch any errors” that could potentially create any unnecessary work or costs, Scorrano said.

Whenever projects can be handled “inhouse,” the town can save a bunch of money, he added.

That’s on top of his regular duties overseeing road maintenance and snow removal. Alongside Scorrano, DeVito also addresses issues with state roads in town.

The “add ons” reflect the “real work that the highway superintendent does and saves this town hundreds of thousands of dollars every single year,” Scorrano said, noting that DeVito “goes above and beyond.”

“Just so the public understands, when the town needs an engineer, it hires one. The superintendent will review those plans and make sure they work in real field conditions,” he said, adding that DeVito's expanded role will “save taxpayers significant money.”

The motion on the highway superintendent’s salary passed 4 to 1, with Councilman Richard Clinchy voting "nay.”

“I feel conflicted, but no. Sorry,” he said.

WATER RATE INCREASE SOUGHT

There will also be a hearing on Wednesday, Dec. 10, on the town’s proposed water billing rate increase.

Water/Sewer Superintendent Frederick McQuillan told the town in September that the Northern Westchester Joint Water Works has increased its bulk water rates by 11.5 percent since 2021.

This has, he said, the cost from $3.78 to $4.22 per 1,000 gallons used.

Up to this point, the town has been able to absorb the increases and hasn’t had to increase water bills since January 2020, he said.

But now, the NWJWW is asking for a 4 to 5 percent hike in 2026.

In order to offset those charges, and help compensate for the budget increases proposed in the Consolidated Water District’s 2026 spending plan, McQuillan asked for a 6 percent hike in water rates.

(The full list is available in documents attaches to the Town Board’s Nov. 6 agenda on its website, www.somersny.gov.)

The proposed rates would increase the average residential water bill by between $40 and $50 at year.

The changes, if adopted by the Town Board, would take effect on Jan. 1 and be applied to water bills for the quarter ending March 31, 2026, he said.

BOCES SOLAR AMBITIONS

There will also be a public hearing on Wednesday, Dec. 10, on Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES’s request for a “solar overlay district” at its Somers campus.

This summer, the town approved legislation aimed at regulating so-called “solar farms,” which were currently not allowed in the zoning code.

Under the proposed ordinance, Tier 1, aka roof-mounted/building integrated systems, will be reviewed and approved by the building department -- as they are now -- and allowed in all zoning districts. They won’t need to get site plan approval from the Planning Board but will still have to meet certain requirements.

(Permitting requirements for Tier 2 systems were “reserved” for now.)

Large-scale, ground-mounted systems, commonly referred to as “solar farms,” are generally classified as Tier 3 by the state.

PNWBOCES’s new Sustainability Committee put forth the proposal for a Tier 3 system in order to, it said, make the Somers campus “greener, healthier, and more energy-efficient for students and staff alike.”

Schools where the ordinance might apply are Primrose Elementary School, Somers High School, Lincoln Hall, and John F. Kennedy Catholic Preparatory School.