Mayor Jack Martins vowed to have a more open government if he was elected mayor. Now that he has, Martins wants the residents of Mineola to give input into the budget process.

Since being elected on March 18, Martins has been busy formulating concepts for the 2003-2004 budget. The new mayor won't have much time in office before the board has to adopt a budget. The board has until April 30 to pass a budget.

As part of the budget process, there will be budget work sessions and a budget hearing this month. The budget work sessions will take place on Wednesday, April 9 and Thursday, April 10 at 7 p.m. in village hall, 155 Washington Avenue. Although residents won't be able to comment on the budget at these meetings, they are invited to listen to the budget discussions, which Martins said will be held in the large meeting room where the public meetings take place.

Then on Monday, April 14 at 7 p.m., the village will hold a budget hearing at village hall. At the hearing, residents will be allowed to comment on the budget as well as ask any question.

The new mayor is encouraging all residents to come to all three meetings to see how the budget is worked on and ultimately put together. "I need people to understand the process," he said, preferring that residents be a part of the budget process. "I want them to be a part of the dialogue. I want them to understand the current fiscal state of the village and what needs to be fixed."

Although John P. Colbert's term expired on April 7, the former mayor was still obligated by law to submit a budget to the village clerk by March 31.

Colbert's budget called for a 4.97 percent tax increase over the 2002-2003 budget. The former mayor's $14,548,178 budget includes a tax rate of $13.46 per $100 of assessed valuation for the General Fund, $0.98 for the Pool Fund and $2.43 for the Library Fund for a total tax rate of $16.88 per $100 of assessed valuation.

Colbert pointed out that there were several factors that led to the 4.97 percent increase. Among the factors contributing to the increase was a loss of $700,000 in assessed valuation, which accounted for a 1.3 percent increase; an increase in the required contribution to the N.Y. State Retirement Fund accounted for a 1.4 percent increase; an increase in library funding accounted for a 1.6 percent increase; an increase in health insurance costs accounted for a 1.1 percent increase and an increase in general liability insurance accounted for a 1.2 percent increase. In addition, due to the expiration of the current union contract, the village had to make extra provisions for a possible raise in salaries for union workers.

It is extremely unlikely, though, that Colbert's budget will be the one that stands. However, the former mayor still had to submit a budget as a matter of formality.

Colbert, though, still feels comfortable with the budget he put forth. "If I was the mayor, I would go with this budget," he said. "I did this budget as if it was my budget and I would have gone with this budget. If I was doing another term of office, this is the budget that I would stand by."

It's no secret that Martins will have his own procedures when it comes to putting forth a budget for 2003-2004. Among some of the initiatives the new mayor may put forth is increasing the line for tax certiorari payments. Colbert's budget allocates $500,000 for tax cert payments, but Martins may want to increase that line further so the village will not have to bond for tax certs.

Also, Martins voted against the 2002-2003 budget last year because, among other reasons, he didn't believe in transferring $300,000 from the Water Fund to the General Fund. Therefore, it is extremely unlikely Martins would transfer that much money from the Water Fund to the General Fund.

In addition, Martins, who talked about the village's debt of $33 million during his campaign, may put in a plan to address the debt in the budget.

Residents should find out this Wednesday and Thursday at the budget work sessions and on Monday, April 14 at the budget hearing about the mayor's plans for the budget.

Franzini Appointed to Board

When Jack Martins took over as mayor of Mineola, he vacated the trustee seat he was elected to last year. Therefore, the mayor appointed his running mate Steve Franzini to fill the seat for one year. Franzini ran this past election for trustee under the New Line Party and finished third behind Lou Santosus of the Village Party and running mate Larry Werther.

For Franzini as well as Werther, it will mark their first stints on the village's board of trustees. Franzini is a retired New York City Police Officer whose community involvement includes being a former member of the Corpus Christi School Board, a member of the Knights of Columbus and being active in the PAL and MAA.

Werther Named Deputy Mayor

In addition to having a new mayor, Mineola will have a new deputy mayor. Larry Werther was appointed by Mayor Martins to be the deputy mayor of Mineola. The former deputy mayor Lou Santosus still serves on the board since he garnered the most votes in the trustees election on March 18.