Warwick supervisor warns $200,000 cut to road paving after county tax shift and distribution error

Supervisor Jesse Dwyer told the Town of Warwick board on July 9 that a recent Orange County decision to cap the gasoline sales tax at $2 per gallon, combined with a county distribution error that reduced sales-tax sharing by about 20%, has worsened the town’s revenue outlook.

"For Warwick, that $20 individual savings for commuters translates to a loss of more than $35,000 in local sales tax revenue," Dwyer said, and he added that the town’s first-quarter sales-tax receipts were about $200,000 below expectations after the county error. "Consequently, in light of the sharp reduction in anticipated county sales tax revenue, the town of Warwick has been forced to reduce our road paving budget this year by $200,000."

The nut of the matter: the county action shifts a small per-gallon tax cut for motorists into a revenue loss for municipalities that had relied on the sales-tax share to fund local services. Dwyer framed it as a tax-shift: "This vote, while appearing noble on the surface, came just 2 months after a county distribution error that reduced sales tax revenue sharing to local towns and villages by 20%."

Dwyer also called attention to a separate potential fiscal exposure: a recently acquired property formerly used as a data center and now owned by the Jehovah’s Witnesses, which the town values at about $54 million on its tax rolls. He said the parcel "is currently valued on our tax rolls at approximately $54,000,000" and noted that "under New York State real property tax law section 420-a, properties used exclusively for religious purposes are eligible for a full exemption from property taxes." If that parcel receives the exemption, Dwyer said the town could lose a substantial annual payment that currently helps the town and the Tuxedo Central School District.

Dwyer said town leadership is weighing options "to do everything within our legal power to protect Warwick’s tax base," but he warned that local options are limited because the exemption is codified at the state level. He also cautioned that the town’s long-term land-preservation choices under its PDR (Purchase of Development Rights) program — potentially increasing preserved acreage by more than 1,000 acres — reduce future tax base growth even as they preserve rural character.

What happens next: the supervisor said the town will continue to monitor county actions and the status of the property exemption, and that further budget adjustments may be required if county distributions are not corrected.

Sources and attributions: statements above are taken from Supervisor Jesse Dwyer’s remarks recorded at the July 9 Town Board meeting.