The city administration in Poughkeepsie must come up with $3.6 million in cuts to balance its 2013 budget. Mayor John Tkazyik announced on Wednesday that the financial problems facing all local municipalities won’t disappear overnight and may be around for at least the next five years.
With diminishing property tax collections, sales tax and mortgage taxes coupled with rising personnel costs, Tkazyik said the city will have to face some stark facts.
“The unfortunate reality is that a tax increase of some form and employee layoffs are inevitable,” Tkazyik said. “We will work very hard moving forward before I release the proposed budget to the common council on October 15th.”
The mayor said he cannot find any possible additional revenue sources without imposing “burdensome property tax increases beyond the state mandated two percent cap