The Warren County Board of Supervisors on Friday set a November 20, 2026, public hearing on a $223.6 million tentative budget for 2027 that would result in a countywide tax rate decrease.
The tentative budget would remain under the NY State Property Tax Cap and would bring a tax rate decrease despite an extremely difficult financial landscape.
“The reduction of our tax rate and effort to stay below the NY State tax cap reflect a lot of hard work by our department heads and Budget Team,” noted Queensbury at-large Supervisor Nate Etu, the Board of Supervisors Budget Officer. “This budget will result in effective planning to maintain essential programs and county public works infrastructure while keeping upcoming costs predictable and as affordable as possible in an uncertain economic climate.”
The overall budget would increase $8.7 million due in large part to higher costs for Social Services programs, NY State retirement, contractual employee wages and employee health insurance. The property tax levy will increase 2.46%, within the 2.59% NY State tax cap.
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However, due to increased valuation to real property in Warren County, the countywide property tax rate will decrease by five cents to $3.238 per $1,000 in assessed value, keeping Warren County’s tax rate among the lowest in New York. (Please note: Tax rates per municipality will vary based on equalization rate; a breakdown by municipality can be found online here.)
Highlights from the tentative budget
- Deletes 7 full-time and 4 part-time vacant positions, for a net reduction of 5.5 positions.
- Dedicates $6.4 million for road paving and improvements.
- Allocates funding to adjust to changes in federal support of Social Services programs.
- Strengthens financial management through reorganization.
- Preserves fund balance for financial needs in the future.
“This budget strikes a good balance between funding important programs for our residents, including major investments in our roads and personnel, with continuing to keep our property taxes low,” said Kevin Geraghty, Chair of the Warren County Board of Supervisors. “I would like to especially express my gratitude to our Budget Officer Nate Etu for his hard work and leadership, and thank our budget team for all their efforts to create a solid budget during trying financial times.”
The Board of Supervisors will consider adopting the tentative budget following a public hearing at the regularly scheduled Friday, November 20th Board of Supervisors meeting. The meeting will be livestreamed and video-archived on Warren County’s YouTube page here for those who are unable to attend.
Supervisor Etu’s budget presentation can be found here on the Warren County website.
