Archive: News

At a meeting of the Legislature’s Government Performance and Workforce Relations Committee today, County Administrator Joe Mareane presented the Tompkins County Quarterly Indicators Report for July 2009.  The Quarterly Indicators Report uses the most recent data available to provide insights into the major social, economic and fiscal trends that impact Tompkins County and its budget.

“Nearly every one of the economic, social, and fiscal indicators we are tracking reflects the depth of the current recession, Administrator Mareane notes. “Compared to the same period last year, the County's welfare caseload is up by 15% and sales taxes used to help pay those costs are down by almost 9%.  Not surprising to any consumer, the price the County pays for gasoline has jumped by 64% since the April Indicator's Report.

“Fortunately, not all the news is bad,” he continues.  “Activity at our airport continues to grow, with passenger enplanements up by 21% from last year. County department heads have managed their overtime carefully, resulting in overtime costs that are down by 24% from this time last year.  In all, the Indicators point to a continuing economic slowdown that is increasing the cost of safety net programs the County is mandated to deliver and reducing the revenue available to pay for those programs.”

Among other indicators, the report notes a 5.4% County unemployment rate in May that is the highest May jobless rate since at least 1990; an 18% increase in food stamp caseloads from a year earlier; and an average interest rate on County deposits of only .9%, down from an average earning of 2.2% in May 2008.

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