POUGHKEEPSIE – Dutchess
County Government has been rated in the latest state comptroller’s
fiscal stress test as having a “no designation” classification.
The higher the score, the greater the degree of fiscal stress. A score
of 44.9 percent or less indicts a fiscally healthy local government and
is not given a fiscal stress designation.
Dutchess County scored a 22.1 on the comptroller’s scale, which
is a significant improvement from the 2012/13 score of 41.3 percent.
County Executive Marcus Molinaro said it has been his administration’s
priority to focus on and reassert the county’s economic and fiscal
health.
“We have done significantly well in improving our fiscal condition,
a bond rating upgrade. We closed $40 million budget gap. We provided the
largest tax levy reduction in 14 years and all of this means that Dutchess
County taxpayers getting more efficient delivery of county services,”
he said.
Molinaro said over the past three years – 2012, 2013 and 2014 –
the county had a deficit in only one year, 2012, with a surplus in 2013
of $4.5 million and in 2014 of $21.6 million for all funds combined.
