Amanda Purcell is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media outgoing Hudson Mayor Tiffany Martin Hamilton presented the 2018 proposed city budget to the Common Council last week and a hearing to receive public comment on the proposal was held Mon., Nov. 13. The $11.2 spending plan includes salary increases for several departments, including the mayor, who will receive a $15,000 hike to $60,000 a year. The budget is below the state’s tax cap and will increase services, Hamilton said. Projected increases in revenue include $100,000 in sales tax, $30,000 in Amtrak parking lot permit fees, $240,000 in lodging tax revenue and $7,000 in lodging tax registration fees. Those additional funds will help offset some expenditures, Hamilton said. The largest increased expenditures include a 46 percent hike in legal fees to support ongoing litigation and a 41 percent bump in the Youth Department budget, which includes a full-time director, clerk and recreational attendant. Budgeted employee salaries range from $103,000 for the head of the Department of Public Works to $48,000 for a code enforcement worker. The police department will see an increase of 8 percent and the fire department will add its first part-time administrative staff member. Officials will use $409,000 from the fund balance to balance the budget. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.