Southold Town set to hammer out 2027 budget details before Nov. 4 hearing

Southold Town Supervisor Al Krupski says the Town Board has done a “great job of catching up” on the proposed 2027 budget as officials enter the final stretch of review before next month’s public hearing.

Since he released the tentative budget Oct. 2, the board has met with every department head to review their operations and needs, Mr. Krupski said.

“I’m still dedicated to not piercing the tax cap,” Mr. Krupski told The Suffolk Times Friday.

The board is expected to continue chiseling away at the spending plan at a 9 a.m. work session Tuesday at Town Hall — the last budget-review session currently scheduled before the Nov. 4 public hearing. The agenda calls for officials to finalize nonpersonnel budget items at 10 a.m. and personnel items in executive session at noon.

Mr. Krupski said most of the budget is made up of personnel costs. Most nonpersonnel costs, he added, are travel or office supplies.

The tentative budget stays under the tax cap while increasing the property-tax levy by nearly $1.3 million, The Suffolk Times previously reported. The $65.94 million spending plan is 2.79% larger than the adopted 2026 operating budget. It calls for collecting $46.22 million in property taxes, a 2.87% increase.

The combined town tax rate would rise from $398.646 to $407.763 per $1,000 of assessed value, an increase of $9.117, or 2.29%. Tax bills will vary by location and assessment because residents pay different combinations of town, highway, solid-waste and outside-village taxes.

At an Oct. 8 budget meeting, the board discussed removing a $250,000 department service line from next year’s budget. Councilwoman Jill Doherty separately emphasized the importance of the town’s phased sidewalk work.

“Our sidewalks have been neglected for years due to cost,” Ms. Doherty said. “So a few years back, the previous administration developed this yearly phased approach and it has been working very well.”

Board members also discussed possible changes during an Oct. 14 work session. Tuesday’s agenda lists the budget items set for finalization but does not say whether those additional changes will return for discussion.

The town must adopt a final 2027 budget by Nov. 20.