The Plandome Heights board of trustees unanimously passed its first two laws of the year at its meeting on Monday, Jan. 5.
The board waived the property tax cap for the fiscal year starting in June 2026 and amended a section of the village code regarding written notices about village property defects.
The board did not raise taxes at Monday’s meeting, but passed a law to give the village flexibility for the next year’s budget.
State law prohibits villages from increasing property taxes by more than the 2% or the rate of inflation, whichever is less, but the village can waive this tax cap with a supermajority vote as the board did Monday.
Mayor Kenneth Riscica said he was not confident if the town could keep tax increases to 2%.
“It’s no surprise to anyone,” Riscica said, “that we’re not living in a 2% inflation world.”
Riscica referred to similar villages like Baxter Estates and Plandome Manor, which have raised taxes this past fiscal year, as evidence that raising taxes may be prudent.
During public comments, Rosemary Mascali, president of the Plandome Heights Civic Association, said she hopes the board “does not abuse this” tax cap waiver, and noted that the village has had surpluses for the past few years.
But the mayor noted that there are ways to try and keep costs down, citing the example of the recent negotiations with the village’s snow removal contractor, Creative Snow by Cow Bay, which turned out better than expected.
“We’re just accepting the reality that we’re probably beyond being able to [not exceed the 2% tax cap],” Riscica said. “But we’re not surrendering. We will fight for every dollar as we always do.”
The second law passed was an amendment to the village code’s section regarding village liability for defects of streets, signs, or other village property that could cause harm.
The village is only liable for damage caused by village property defects if it has already been notified about the defect.
Based on the advice of the New York Conference of Mayors, the board changed the code to require a notice to specifically be in the form of a signed letter to the village rather than an email, social media post, or any other form of complaint.
The board closed the meeting with some updates. The pothole on Bayview Circle has been filled, and there is still one resident who has not paid last year’s village taxes.
Going forward, if the board plans to raise taxes, it will have to take public comments on the village’s budget in spring 2026.
