The Rockland County Legislature approved the at Tuesday night’s meeting.
A public hearing was scheduled for Tuesday’s meeting on the proposed budget, but no-one in the crowd spoke during the hearing on the budget.
The college’s expenses are projected to jump $1,777,166 from $65,158,660 to $66,935,826 for September 1, 2012 through August 31, 2013. RCC’s budget includes funds for the Retired Senior Volunteer Program.
The budget increases the county’s share by 1.87 percent or $300,000, bringing its portion from $16,075,567 to $16,375,567.
The budget vote passed by a vote of 15-1, with one legislator absent from the meeting. The only “no” vote came from Legislator Joseph Meyers, who wondered why the county’s share was raising $300,000 given the financial state of the county. He said he knows the share can’t go down, but wasn’t sure why it was going up.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the legislature also extended bus contracts for three months while it’s still in the process of sorting through bids to find a company to run its bus services.
The legislature extended its contract with Transport of Rockland from July 1 through September 31 for Routes 59, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 97, Loop 1, Loop 2 and Loop 3 for a total contract amount not to exceed $2,804,286.75, no county tax dollars. The legislature also unanimously passed a resolution to extend the contract for Hudson Transit Corp. to continue operating the Tappan ZEExpress for the same period for a total contract amount to not exceed $842,904.84, no county tax dollars. Transport of Rockland’s Route 93 partial bus service contract was also extended for that same time period for a total contract amount not to exceed $74,021.73, no county tax dollars.
Attending was Richard Brega Jr., who owns Brega Transport Corp. in Valley Cottage. He has shown up at various legislature meetings in recent months because he says he was told his company put in the lowest bid of any company, yet they have not been given the contract nor told why the process is taking so long.
The legislators also unanimously passed a number of bond resolutions. The resolutions authorized the financing of:
- improvements to the Demarest Kill County Park dam, stating the current estimated maximum cost thereof is $1,000,000, appropriating $1,000,000 for such purpose and authorizing the issuance of $1,000,000 bonds.
- upgrades for the courthouse security systems, stating the current estimated maximum cost thereof is $600,000, appropriating $600,000 for such purpose and authorizing the issuance of $600,000 bonds.
- automotive garage improvements, stating the current estimated maximum cost thereof is $500,000, appropriating $500,000 for such purpose and authorizing the issuance of $500,000 bonds.
- countywide HVAC improvements, stating the current estimated maximum cost thereof is $500,000, appropriating $500,000 for such purpose and authorizing the issuance of $500,000 bonds.
- construction of an addition and improvements to the Fire Training Center County Communications Radio Room and acquisition of fire alarm communications equipment, including preliminary costs and expenses, stating the current estimated maximum cost thereof is $8,650,000, appropriating $650,000 in addition to the $8,000,000 heretofore appropriated for such purpose in an earlier resolution and authorizing the issuance of $650,000 bonds.
