Chemung County approves seven budget resolutions including sewer bonds and property sale

Chemung County officials approved seven budget resolutions May 5, 2025, in two omnibus motions that authorized transfers and appropriations, the sale of county-owned property back to former owners, and bond financing for sewer improvements in the Elmira Sewer District and Chemung County Sewer District No. 1.

The resolutions were taken in two grouped votes. An omnibus motion covering resolutions 1–4 was moved by Marty and seconded by K. Buren and was carried by voice vote. A second omnibus motion covering resolutions 5–7 was moved by Strange, seconded by John, and likewise carried.

The first group of resolutions included: (1) a resolution authorizing transfers and appropriations by the county executive; (2) a resolution authorizing the county treasurer to sell county-owned property to the former owners (the sale/auction period was described as running May 16–30); (3) a resolution approving, pursuant to section 268 of the County Law, an increase and improvement of facilities for the Elmira Sewer District at a maximum estimated cost of $280,000; and (4) a resolution authorizing $280,000 in bonds to pay the cost of that Elmira Sewer District project.

During discussion of the first group, participants asked about a revenue transfer described as a community college chargeback. A meeting participant said the county received more revenue than budgeted and that the $513,000 increase in revenue is being offset by a corresponding $513,000 increase in contract distributions for the community college chargebacks, producing a net zero effect on the budget. The county treasurer, Caitlin, confirmed that any surplus from the property sale would go into escrow.

The second group of resolutions included: (5) a resolution approving, pursuant to section 268 of the County Law, an increase and improvement of facilities for Chemung County Sewer District No. 1 at a maximum estimated cost of $295,000; (6) a resolution authorizing $295,000 in bonds to pay the cost of that project; and (7) a resolution approving certain applications for and disbursement of community development funds. A staff member described the sewer project as roughly a $1,500,000 effort, saying, “It’s approximately a $1,500,000 project. A million of it is gonna be funded by a DEC grant, which has already been secured. The remaining roughly $500,000 would be funded by bonds issued by Chemung County, which would be repaid by the members of that extension district.” The staff member added that legal steps remain and that starting construction this season is a goal but not certain.

All motions were carried by voice vote. No recorded roll-call vote tallies were given in the transcript.

The meeting concluded with brief new-business remarks, including a publicly offered thank-you to Caitlin, the county treasurer, for assistance with taxpayer questions, and then adjournment.