Oneida County’s $577 million budget gets its last hearing tonight before Thursday’s vote

Oneida County legislators are holding the last of two public hearings on the 2027 county budget tonight in Utica, two days before the board’s scheduled vote on Thursday, Nov. 12.

The hearing starts at 5 p.m. in the Board Chambers on the 10th floor of the County Office Building, 800 Park Ave. The first was scheduled for Monday night at the Plumley Complex on Mohawk Valley Community College’s Rome campus, according to the legal notice from the clerk of the Board of Legislators. Both hearings cover County Executive Anthony Picente Jr.’s spending plan, his capital program and the Ways and Means Committee’s report on them. Copies of the budget are available at the clerk’s office.

What’s in the plan

Picente presented the budget on Oct. 8. It totals just over $577 million and keeps the county property tax levy flat. Because taxable property values keep rising, a flat levy means a lower rate: the county projects $3.95 per $1,000 of full value in 2027, down from $4.21 this year. The rate was $7.06 in 2013. Over the same stretch, taxable value in the county has roughly doubled, from just over $10 billion to nearly $21 billion.

For a home with a full market value of $200,000, the drop from $4.21 to $3.95 works out to about $52 less on the county share of the tax bill, if the assessment holds steady. County taxes are only one line on bills in Clinton and Kirkland, alongside town, village and school taxes, so the total someone pays depends on more than this vote.

The capital plan pays off nearly $19 million in existing debt and calls for about $17.9 million in new borrowing. Among the bigger items listed by the county:

• $27 million for the Water Pollution Control Plant
• $24 million for the County Road Fund
• $15 million for economic development
• $2 million in a restricted fund for housing, tied to a new housing division in the Planning Department

The housing money is meant to carry out recommendations from a county housing team in early 2027. The county has set a goal of 6,000 new housing units by 2040.

Not everyone gets more. The budget cuts funding by up to 12% for some outside agencies, and discretionary spending is $200,000 lower than in 2026. The county says it’s absorbing higher fuel, equipment and utility costs along with state and federal mandates and a bigger share of programs such as SNAP and HEAP. Support continues for Cornell Cooperative Extension, Mohawk Valley EDGE, local humane societies, libraries and MVCC.

“This is my 20th budget,” Picente said when he released it.

Questions before the vote

Not every legislator is ready to sign off. Chris Newton, a Republican who represents District 13, said on WUTQ’s Talk 100.7 on Monday that he still has unanswered questions days before the vote.

The board’s Nov. 12 meeting is listed on the county’s meeting video page, where past sessions are posted. Residents who can’t make tonight’s hearing can still reach their county legislator before Thursday.