Kathy M. Sheehan, Mayor Rachel McEneny, Budget Director City of Albany
BudgetMore budgets from Albany
The City School District of Albany proposed a $260.4 million budget for 2019-20 with a 1.99% tax-levy increase, marking the sixth consecutive year of increases below 2% and averaging 0.86% over that period. The budget, unanimously approved by the Board of Education on April 4, maintains comprehensive academic and extracurricular programs including full-day pre-K, music instruction, foreign language programs, Advanced Placement courses, and Community Schools initiatives, while expanding Community Schools funding by approximately $600,000 to add Edmund J. O'Neal Middle School. Voters were scheduled to decide on the proposal on May 21, 2019.
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The City of Albany commissioned Public Financial Management (PFM) to analyze the city's finances for fiscal years 2017-2020 and identify measures to reduce expenditures, increase revenues, and improve service efficiency, building on previous recommendations from the State's Financial Restructuring Board. The analysis was conducted in response to the State of New York's request that Albany reduce its dependence on State aid, and was informed by a 2015 Albany County shared services strategy aimed at enabling jurisdictions to comply with property tax caps and access State tax rebates. PFM's interdisciplinary team of consultants reviewed the city's financial documents and met with city officials and department heads to develop recommendations for phasing down State aid while increasing municipal efficiency.
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