Westchester County property owners are looking at a 3.3% property tax increase next year under a proposed $2.7 billion budget that county officials say closes a $113 million gap without cutting a single job. County Executive Ken Jenkins unveiled the spending plan on Monday, framing it as a way to protect services like youth programs, food assistance and affordable housing even as costs rise.
Jenkins presented the proposed 2027 Operating Budget on Nov. 9, according to Westfair Communications, which totals $2.7 billion and calls for the 3.3% tax increase. As News 12 reports, the plan would leave currently vacant county positions unfilled rather than cutting existing staff or programs.
“We have closed a projected $113 million budget gap,” Jenkins said, according to a statement carried by EIN Presswire, adding the county did so “without resorting to employee layoffs or drawing down a single dollar from our vital rainy-day reserves.” The plan calls for eliminating 160 vacant positions and defunding more than 300 additional vacancies, per the same statement, rather than touching filled jobs.
How the Numbers Break Down for Homeowners
County officials say the proposed increase stays within New York State's property tax cap, according to the EIN Presswire statement. For an individual tax bill, News 12's reporting puts the impact at about $34 more per year for a $500,000 Westchester home.
This year's proposed hike is smaller than what residents saw play out with the current budget cycle. The county's 2026 adopted budget carried a 3.7% tax levy increase, after the Westchester County Board of Legislators reduced Jenkins's original proposal from 5.27% down to that figure, according to the Westchester County Board of Legislators. That 2026 package totaled $2.5 billion and reduced nearly all county department budgets by 8%, eliminating 180 positions in the process, the board said at the time.
Where the New Revenue Would Go
Jenkins said the additional tax revenue would help maintain youth programs, food assistance and affordable housing, per News 12's reporting on the county executive's remarks. The proposed budget maintains a $100 million commitment to affordable childcare and adds $3.1 million for youth development and after-school programming, according to the EIN Presswire statement. It also directs more than $1 million to local food pantries to combat food insecurity, including an additional $200,000 in direct grants.
The budget also holds the line on recreation costs: Westfair reports there are no planned increases to current admission and usage fees at county pools, beaches, golf courses and other recreational facilities.
What Happens Next
The Board of Legislators' final vote on the finished budget remains ahead. The county has scheduled two informational budget meetings — one on Nov. 12 at the Doles Center in Mount Vernon and another on Nov. 18 at the Ford Administration Building in Peekskill — with a public hearing set for Dec. 9, per Westfair's reporting. As with last year's process, the final adopted figures could still shift before that vote.
