Cities, towns and counties statewide face a budget-busting rise in their employee pension costs and New Yorkers, already hit by the recession, will likely see higher property taxes.
It’s the latest financial hit to come from last year’s stock market crash, state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli said Thursday as he released the 2011 pension contribution rates for towns, cities, counties and the state work force.
“It is going to have an impact on local budgets,” DiNapoli said.
Due largely to the state Employee Retirement System’s battered investment portfolio, the percentage of payroll that local governments must contribute for pensions will rise from 7.4 percent next year to 11.9 percent in 2011.
The higher contributions are expected to cost the city of Albany $4.5 million more. In Albany County, it could cost another $6 million by 2012, Comptroller Mike Conners said…
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