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Town board forwards amended occupancy‑tax request to state after village concerns
Summary
The board unanimously voted to send a resolution to the state legislature authorizing a temporary occupancy tax to fund bridge replacement and ADA sidewalk work; the board amended the correspondence to the village to commit any leftover funds to two capital‑project accounts.
At the March 23 meeting the board voted unanimously to forward an amended resolution (20‑26‑1‑16) to the New York State legislature requesting authority to impose a temporary occupancy (bed) tax intended to fund a bridge replacement and ADA sidewalk and curbing upgrades.
Board members said the request is time‑sensitive because the legislature’s session window closes in mid‑June. The board’s original draft projected potential revenue and offered to share leftover funds with the village; the village responded with questions about revenue sharing, the expected revenue amount and whether the town’s language contained a sunset provision.
"If there’s leftover money, we’ll share 30% with the village," the board said on the floor while explaining the offer of revenue sharing. Town counsel and staff clarified that statutory rules constrain how the town may structure rates and fund designation and that occupancy tax authorization is limited by statute to a fixed period tied to legislative approval. To address the village’s concerns, the board made an on‑the‑floor amendment inserting explicit whereas language committing any funds collected to two capital‑project accounts (Parsonage Street bridge replacement and town‑hall ADA sidewalks/curbing) and agreed to respond directly to the village’s email with clarifying language.
The amended correspondence to the village and the resolution to the legislature were both adopted unanimously. The board said it will seek a supporting village resolution but acknowledged that if the village does not provide it the town will still forward its request to the legislator.
No tax rate change or effective date was set by the board at the meeting; the board said statutory limitations and the legislature will determine final rate and sunset provisions.
