Islip Town Board fails to vote on budget

The Town of Islip Board failed to bring its 2027 preliminary budget to a vote during a hearing last week after four council members refused to give the town supervisor a second on her motion to vote.

After the town comptroller’s office presented an over $306 million 2027 preliminary budget to the Town of Islip Board on Nov. 5, no council members gave town supervisor Angie Carpenter a second on her motion to vote on the current budget, with some council members later citing a lack of town board input and an expected tax raise and cap piercing for their decision against a vote.

“No surprise, across Long Island, we’re seeing budgets increasing,” Carpenter said during the hearing. “Most of these are largely unavoidable costs tied to our obligations to employees, our taxpayers, and the delivery of essential town services. And we do deliver the services that our residents have come to expect and quite frankly deserve.”

Bob Kordic, secretary to the town comptroller, presented highlights of the 2027 preliminary budget, which is six percent, or $17.6 million, higher than the town’s 2026 budget, and pierces a state-determined cap usually around two percent. The Town of Islip Board previously voted to override its tax cap for its 2025 and 2026 budgets.

If passed as is, the 2027 budget would increase a household’s annual town taxes by $135, Kordic said. Major drivers behind this increase include $4.4 million for a garbage disposal contract the town passed earlier this year, $2.5 million more for employee health insurance, $1.3 for pensions, and a $3.8 million increase in “contractual salary obligations.”

Supervisor Carpenter then asked for a second to her motion to vote on the town’s 2027 operating budget, which received silence from the board.

Shortly after the vote, council member John Lorenzo said on Facebook that he voted against the current budget due to the ongoing “affordability crisis.”

“With the rising costs of groceries, utilities, home heating, and everyday necessities, the last thing our hardworking families and seniors need is another tax increase,” Lorenzo said. “I look forward to working with my fellow Town Board members to find responsible solutions, explore new revenue opportunities, and identify ways to operate more efficiently without placing additional financial burdens on Islip residents.”

Fellow council member Michael McElwee agreed with Lorenzo’s sentiments, but added that he felt the town supervisor “prepared a budget without meaningful input from her fellow Town Board members.”

McElwee said he was surprised nobody entertained the supervisor’s budget vote, and that in his three years on the council, there weren’t many “meaningful conversations” ahead of budget votes. The lack of inclusion was more pronounced this year, he said. The council member also said potential revenue generators, like OpenGov software to electronically process building permits and fees faster, have been slow to include in budgets.

“I come from the business side of it. I either want to drive revenue or cut expenses,” McElwee said.

But McElwee also said he also recognizes the need for improved town services, citing his vote for the over $4 million garbage contract, which means overriding the tax cap to prevent cutting services.

When asked for comment on the town budget’s vote status, and whether supervisor Carpenter created the budget “without meaningful input from her fellow Town Board members,” a Town of Islip spokesperson directed inquiries to a public statement Carpenter released the morning after the vote.

“We all know that increasing taxes is very unpopular. However, when faced with difficult choices, I chose to protect the livelihood of our incredible employees, and continue to provide the essential services that our residents rely on and deserve,” Carpenter said in her statement.

Carpenter said the town line on a resident’s bill is roughly five percent of their total bills, with 70 percent of bills usually going toward school districts. The town supervisor also added that the budget process proceeded as usual by town law, with her office working with the town comptroller to develop a budget that was presented publicly in September, and is available for anyone to view during regular business hours.

“This is a transparent and fair process and has remained so for the past 11 years,” Carpenter added in her statement. “I know that any increase may not be politically expedient, but this will allow our Town to be sustainable and thriving moving forward.”

The Town of Islip Board has until Nov. 20 to amend and vote on its 2027 operating budget. If no vote occurs before then, the preliminary budget will automatically pass.