Most towns avoid tax hikes; 7 on LI plan to either reduce or hold rates steady; But falling revenue, rising costs prompting layoffs
Despite grappling with plummeting revenue and swelling pension and health-care costs, most Long Island towns intend to hold the line on taxes in 2011.
Flat tax rates will not come without a cost in towns such as Brookhaven, which intends to lay off 69 workers, and Islip, where officials expect to continue their effort to reduce the workforce, which will be 24 percent smaller than it was in 2006.
With 10 Long Island towns revealing proposed 2011 budgets by the end of yesterday, Brookhaven and Islip were among seven to report that town taxes will either hold steady or drop. Town taxes are a relatively small part of a homeowner's overall tax bill; in Brookhaven, they are less than 7...| read more ››
