Allegany County seeks to maintain its current sales tax for another two years

 This resolution will be voted on Feb. 27th:

REQUESTING STATE LEGISLATIVE REPRESENTATIVES TO INTRODUCE AND SEEK PASSAGE OF LEGISLATION AUTHORIZING THE COUNTY OF ALLEGANY TO CONTINUE THE ADDITIONAL ONE AND ONE-HALF PERCENT COUNTY SALES TAX RATE FOR TWO YEARS 

Offered by: Ways & Means Committee 

WHEREAS, the only two substantial tax revenues available to the County of Allegany are real property and sales; and 

WHEREAS, the County of Allegany is at its sales tax limit; and 

WHEREAS, by Chapter 58 of the 2023 Laws of the State of New York, the County of Allegany was authorized to impose an additional one and one-half percent sales tax for the period of December 1, 2023, through November 30, 2025; and 

WHEREAS, by Resolution No. 190-23, such additional sales tax rate was imposed for such period; and 

WHEREAS, the County of Allegany is presently at 63.94 percent of its constitutional taxing limit for real estate taxes; and 

            WHEREAS, the County of Allegany will be at 100 percent of such constitutional taxing limit if such additional sales tax is not reauthorized; and  

            WHEREAS, the County of Allegany has had no substantial growth in real estate assessed valuation in the past five years; and 

WHEREAS, the County of Allegany’s current economic situation and in order to preserve essential services, any substantial increase in real estate taxes would put in financial jeopardy the County’s large percentage of senior citizens with fixed incomes who would have no choice but to pay such taxes out of such fixed incomes; now, therefore, be it 

RESOLVED: 

            1.         That the Allegany County Board of Legislators requests our State legislative representatives to introduce and seek passage, in the State Senate and Assembly, legislation to authorize the County of Allegany to continue the additional County sales tax rate of one and one-half percent for at least the period of December 1, 2025, through November 30, 2027. 

             2.       That the Clerk of this Board is directed to send copies of this Resolution to Senator George M. Borrello, Senator Thomas F. O’Mara, and Assemblyman Joseph M. Sempoliski.