PORT JERVIS – City council
members are continuing to work on the proposed Port Jervis budget for
2018 in hopes of approving it this time next week.
The spending plan as it stands now has a 9.8 percent property tax hike,
yet Mayor Kelly Decker included a pay raise from the current $20,000 to
$40,000 annually for the city’s top job.
That has prompted Orange County Legislator Thomas Faggione, who represents the city, to speak out against it saying “the last thing to do” would be to increase the salary for the part-time position.
“I hope they can find a way to get this budget passed that doesn’t hurt the taxpayers any more than possible and I think that just adding salaries to elected officials at a time when the tax increase far exceeds the state mandate is just irresponsible,” Faggione said.
Decker said Faggione has no business sticking his nose in the city’s
affairs.
The mayor said Faggione was missing in action at budget hearings and council meetings with public comment.
Decker said the “real fight” Port Jervis has is with outside sources. He said Faggione has been “MIA” on the issue of the county dumping social services recipients in the city, thus pushing up city expenses for additional personnel. The Democrat mayor charged that Republican Faggione voted for “bigger government with bigger expenses.”
Decker claimed Faggione was “MIA” on the issue of Port Jervis operating a three-quarter court, meaning on days it is not in session, the city will incur the added expense of transported suspects to Goshen for arraignments.
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