The Maui News - Maui County finance officials told County Council members on Thursday, April 17, that the county will have an additional $530,000 to spend as they continue to hammer out the county’s fiscal year 2009 budget. According to Finance Director Kalbert Young, based on an increase in the county’s real property valuations, the council can expect tax revenues of $221.8 million. In her $561 million budget proposal for 2009, Mayor Charmaine Tavares projected tax income of $221.3 million. As they prepared their own recommendations on the annual spending plan, council members said the $500,000 addition isn’t much in the overall spending program.

Councilmember Danny Mateo suggested the faltering valuations provide proof that Maui will not be insulated from the crunch felt in real estate markets across the nation. Due to vacancies on the Real Property Tax Review Board, the Finance Department has fallen far behind on dealing with appeals of valuations, with 2,907 property valuations appeals filed last month, including 1,436 filed for the current fiscal year. A public hearing on property tax rates is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., on Thursday, April 24, in the Council Chambers.