App users, tap here to watch video report.
MAYVILLE – Chautauqua County Executive P.J. Wendel’s 2021 tentative budget presentation Wednesday painted a picture of optimism for next year after a challenging 2020.
Wendel says he knows that the Chautauqua County Government will see its share of challenges next year. The County’s top official, however, adds that the County will rebound.
“These challenges are many, but I am very confident that the 2021 budget provides a plan for continued success in Chautauqua County,” Wendel said. “My goal is to make 2021’s comeback greater than the 2020 setback.”
Wendel’s budget saw a three percent increase in the property tax levy. The property tax rate, however, saw a decrease of one percent, he added.
Wendel says that his budget calls for an increase of revenues by a half percent. Total expenditures, however, are expected to increase by 0.4 percent because of various employee benefits, etc.
County services weren’t reduced, according to the County Executive.
Wendel discussed the thoughts that he and his budget team had when they started crunching the numbers. He says that they realized they needed to be creative in order to overcome the challenges, such as a projected 10-20 percent decrease in 2020 sales tax revenue.
“We need to budget outside of the box,” Wendel said.
Wendel explains that, in addition to the sales tax decrease, there was a 20 percent drop in the 2020 occupancy tax.
WNYNewsNow will continue to follow the budget process as it unfolds throughout the coming months.
Leave a Reply