Huntington Public Library $8.6M budget approved

Voters in the Huntington Public Library district have approved a $8,634,047 budget for 2012-13.

The budget adopted last week is a reduction of 0.4 percent from the current budget of $8,665,168.

The district will meet requirements of the state-mandated 2 percent tax levy cap. Residents will see an estimated 0.9 percent increase in their tax bill, or a cost of $18.35.

“Meeting costs for the 2012-2013 fiscal year presented significant challenges,” library director Debra Engelhardt said.

In order to observe the cap, the board needed to find about $80,000 in savings, she said. The board decided to take $40,000 from reserves, close the two branches on four holidays they are currently open — Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, President’s Day, Columbus Day and Veteran’s Day — and reduce the number of Sundays branches are open by eight.

One branch is on Main Street and the other is in Huntington Station.

Engelhardt cited increases in mandated payments to New York State for retirement costs, increased health insurance premiums, an obligation to pay the MTA tax and the tax levy cap as critical factors affecting the budget.

Also last week, Paul Ehrlich was elected to a 5-year term on the board, defeating Jairo Sanin. Ehrlich had been appointed to fill a vacancy in November for an unexpired term that ends June 30.