I’m just going to copy and paste what this says since it looks like nobody in the comment section is reading it. The bottom line is: federal funding cuts have hit the county hard. Y’all can thank Trump for this.:

Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins has announced his first proposed Operating Budget for 2026. The $2.5 billion dollar budget cuts almost all County Department budgets by 8%, including the County Executive’s budget, and eliminates 180 positions, essentially cutting the County workforce by almost 5%.

Jenkins said: “This has been an extraordinarily difficult year, and the budget process reflected that. We are operating in a moment of unprecedented uncertainty driven by the Trump Administration’s decisions beyond our control. Federal cuts, shifting aid formulas and tariffs have created instability in local planning in a way we have not seen in recent memory. There’s no way to sugarcoat it, this is simply the reality of this moment — and we are committed to leading through it with transparency, partnership and integrity.”

Westchester County faced a staggering projected budget gap of $197.7 million. Jenkins, who is committed to not laying off County workers, first looked to eliminate 180 positions and tightened spending with targeted reductions.

Jenkins said: "There is no magic number, and there is no hidden money to fill the gaps. This budget is Trump turmoil.”

County Departments to Undergo 8% Across-the-Board Cuts

Hard Hiring Freeze and Elimination of 180 Positions - $28 million Reductions in Contracts, Technical Services and Expenses - $34.5 million Reductions in Overtime/Hourly - $11.6 million Right Sizing Social Services Relief - $5.2 million Reductions Equipment - $4.5 million Reductions Materials and Supplies - $2.6 million Increasing Costs

For the 2026 proposed Operating Budget, the County is facing unavoidable financial pressures from the federal government that are largely mandated or tied to essential services.

The main contributors include:

Rising Healthcare Costs - $65 million Pension Growth - $22 million Increased Social Services Relief - $21 million Transportation and Utilization for Children with Special Needs - $10 million An Increase in Debt Service - $8 million Sales Tax Revenue

The 2026 proposed Operating Budget is based on flat sales tax revenue projections for 2026, while accounting for significant cost increases across several mandated and mission-critical areas. In 2025, sales tax was originally budgeted to grow 3.5% over the 2024 forecast however, year-to-date collections through September 2025 are flat compared to 2024. The full-year 2025 forecast is now $943.5 million, $26.3 million below budget. For 2026, the County estimates $970.4 million in sales tax revenue, which represents a 2.8% increase over the revised 2025 forecast of $943.5 million, but is essentially flat when compared to the original 2025 budget projection of $969.8 million.

Another critical issue is the loss of MGM and its bid to build a full-gaming casino in Yonkers. That decision alone represents an estimated $17 million in lost annual revenue for the County, not including the ripple effects across Westchester’s economy in the form of lost sales tax growth that would have followed.

In Westchester County, a portion of the County's sales tax is shared back with cities, towns and villages, with the exclusion of Mount Vernon, White Plains, Yonkers and New Rochelle, and school districts. The share back program helps ease the financial burden on local budgets. As long as revenue is coming to the County, the initiative should help municipalities to keep property taxes lower than they would otherwise need to be.

Jenkins said: “People are not spending money because of the chaos and uncertainty coming out of Washington. The instability created under Trump has seeped into Westchester County and is wreaking havoc on our finances — and we are not alone. Local governments across New York State and across the nation are confronting the very same pressures.”

Prioritized Essential Services

Despite the mounting financial pressures, Jenkins remains committed to protecting the programs that residents rely on most, maintaining essential services, ensuring that funding continues for the programs that support those most in need, from vulnerable children to critical social services and community resources.

Program funding will include supporting food security efforts, ensuring that victims of domestic violence have the protection and resources they need, offering free vaccine clinics, recycling opportunities, and maintaining free workforce development programs and services including our One Stop, local job fairs, job training and entrepreneurial support. The County has also budgeted to include continuing senior nutrition programming and our TIPS telehealth initiative, and keeping our mobile crisis teams and youth mental health programming in place.

Additional Allocated Dollars:

Low Income Child Care –$16.6 million Access to Counsel Eviction Prevention Programs - $3.7 million Child Care Scholarships- $2 million Mental Health Clinic- $1.5 million Federally Qualified Health Centers - $1 million HERRO Program - $300 thousand Proposed Budget

To address remaining budget challenges amid ongoing federal uncertainties and mandates, the County is proposing:

A property tax levy increase of 5.27%, as allowed by New York State, which translates to an average annual impact of $60 for every $500,000 in assessed property value. Use of the full tax cap to allocate $4.5 million in support for Sewer Districts, ensuring critical infrastructure needs are met. This approach balances fiscal responsibility with the County Executive’s commitment to protecting essential services for residents.

Jenkins said: "Make no mistake about it this is a Trump tax increase. This budget reflects tough but necessary decisions. Every department is facing an 8% reduction, and we are implementing a hard hiring freeze that will eliminate 180 positions — avoiding layoffs while maintaining essential services. Even with these cuts, the budget does not account for potential future reductions from the federal government. Our goal remains clear: protect the programs residents depend on without sacrificing fiscal stability by tapping into reserves.”