OSWEGO CO. -- There's good news for Oswego County taxpayers. Your can expect a cut in your tax rate. The Oswego County Legislature adopted its $189 million budget for 2011 last Thursday. In it, the average property tax rate drops from $7.16 to $6.99 for every $1,000 of assessed value.
This is the seventh consecutive year that the county has avoided a tax increase. In next year's budget, lawmakers expect to raise nearly $37 million in revenue through property taxes.
County Legislature Chairman Barry Leemann says state-mandated programs continue to be the most significant factor affecting the county budget and property taxes. "Just nine of the dozens of state and federal mandates will cost local taxpayers $46 million next year," he said.
Leemann says lawmakers, county administration, and department heads scrutinized all aspects of the budget in order to prevent a tax rate increase. Proposed salary increases for department heads and county lawmakers were cut. A number of new positions requested by department heads were also eliminated.
