Maybrook defends steep tax hike, cites rising police and insurance costs

The Maybrook Village Board spent its April 6 reorganization meeting defending a tentative $3.8 million budget that would drive the village’s steepest tax rate increase in nearly a decade, with homeowners in the Town of Montgomery and Town of Hamptonburgh facing sharply higher bills.

Under the proposed 2026-2027 spending plan, the tax rate for Maybrook-Montgomery residents would rise 17.5 percent, from $18.73 to $22.00 per $1,000 of assessed value. In the Maybrook-Hamptonburgh district, the rate would climb 18.59 percent, from $10.82 to $12.83. For a house assessed at $125,000, that translates to an annual increase of $408.75 in Montgomery and $251.25 in Hamptonburgh.

Village leaders said the increase was being driven less by discretionary spending than by a stack of rising fixed costs. The budget summary says the tax levy would increase from $2,222,401 to $2,622,401, a jump of $400,000, while about $345,000 in higher expenses is pushing the plan upward. Among the largest increases are $167,000 for police department operations, $60,000 for health insurance, $50,000 for police retirement and $20,000 for liability insurance. Central Hudson utility costs are also listed as rising by $6,000 per month.

Mayor Dennis Leahy pushed back on social media claims that the levy had risen by a far larger amount and that the board had mishandled the hearing process. He criticized online accusations that the board was acting irresponsibly or criminally, saying the numbers being repeated were wrong. Trustees also said the police department’s expanded weekend coverage, supervisory shifts, salary obligations and updated IT systems were contributing to costs that could not simply be cut away.

The village’s budget materials say no general fund balance has been used for eight consecutive budgets, and the current fund balance stands at $784,941. The village also says it has no fiscal stress designation from the New York State Comptroller’s 2025 monitoring system. Officials pointed to possible future revenue from Galaxy Business Park construction in spring 2026, roughly 180 new homes, the Church of the Assumption property returning to the tax rolls and an updated village fee schedule.

The public will get another chance to weigh in when the board holds a hearing at 7 p.m. April 20 at the Village Office, 111 Schipps Lane, Maybrook. The hearing will cover the fiscal year from June 1, 2026, to May 31, 2027, as Maybrook marks the centennial it celebrated in 2025.