The Warren County Board of Supervisors has approved a 2026 county budget that adjusts to increases in mandated costs but continues to maintain one of the lowest property tax rates in New York State while investing in public safety and infrastructure. The board unanimously voted to enact the budget at its Friday, November 21, 2025 meeting, after a public hearing was held.
The $215.7 million 2026 budget adapted to increased costs for state-mandated services, retirement costs, Medicaid and inflation-related expenditures, pushing it over the NY State tax levy cap of 2.65%. Projected revenue increases and efforts by county agencies to reduce spending will help offset some of the increases.
Increased countywide property valuation, stemming from new development and rising property values, contribute to a countywide property tax rate that will increase by 3 cents to $ 3.293 per $1,000 in assessed value in 2026. That amounts to a tax increase of about $9 for a home valued at $300,000. (Please note that final tax rates per municipality will vary based on property equalization rate. Tax rates by community can be found on page 17 of this presentation.)
With this budget, Warren County will continue to have one of the lowest countywide property tax rates in New York State, (12th lowest of 62 counties as of 2025) while also having the lowest sales tax percentage (7% combined county and state) in New York.
Highlights from the tentative budget:
- Two new patrol officer positions will be added for the Warren County Sheriff’s Office to increase traffic enforcement.
- Mandated increased Medicaid, health insurance and NYS pension contributions add nearly $3 million in spending for 2026. About 20% of the county budget is discretionary spending.
- Labor contracts that improve investment in workforce retention add $3 million in employee wage expenditures for 2026.
- Additional investments were made in a consolidated countywide waste hauling program that is saving towns that opted in hundreds of thousands of dollars annually.
- The budget appropriates nearly $5 million for road paving in 2026.
Said Frank Thomas, Stony Creek Town Supervisor and Warren County Budget Officer: “Putting together a budget for 2026 was challenging as we continue to confront increased costs across the board, including large increases for health insurance, NY State pension contributions, computer software and more, along with projected reductions in state funding and reimbursement for state mandates. Thanks to exemplary work from our staff, we are able to invest in public safety and infrastructure improvements while holding the property tax rate down for property owners during these difficult times.”
Said Kevin Geraghty, Warrensburg Supervisor and Chairman of the Warren County Board of Supervisors: “I would like to thank Budget Officer Frank Thomas and our Budget Team for their efforts as they worked together to assemble this budget during economic uncertainty. We are going to miss Frank as our budget officer going forward, as he is retiring as Stony Creek Town Supervisor at the end of 2025. He has done a phenomenal job as budget officer for 15 years, putting in countless hours every summer and fall to keep Warren County on solid financial ground and to support our dedicated workforce. His contributions to Warren County have been immeasurable.”
Said Warren County Administrator John Taflan: “We are glad to be able to put forward a 2026 budget that delivers the services that make Warren County a great place to live and visit, while continuing to keeping our county property tax rate among the lowest in New York state. Like every household and business, we have had to work through rising costs while revenue is hard to project, and we are gratified that this budget continues to provide the essential services that residents and visitors count on in Warren County. We thank Frank Thomas again for being a steady hand as County Budget Officer for many years, and we will miss his leadership in the future.”
The 2026 budget can be viewed here. A copy of Budget Officer Thomas’ November 7, 2025 presentation about the tentative budget, which was adopted as the final budget without changes, can be found online here.