The Lancaster Town Board is asking department heads to look for potential spending cuts to lower the currently projected 2.97 percent tax rate increase for most property owners next year.

The board met Monday evening for the second of two sessions with department heads, inquiring about requested spending increases and asking where cuts might be made. Board members said they realized the potential tax rate increase of nearly 3 percent is significantly higher than that of a number of other towns.

“We felt it would be best if we could take a look at the budget again, to see if there is some stuff that could be cut out,” Councilman Ronald Ruffino said.

Board members made it clear they would not impose any cuts. Rather, they asked department heads to find savings in their own budgets and submit their proposals by Thursday.

“We’re not telling you what to cut,” Councilwoman Donna Stempniak told one department head after another. “We’re just asking department heads to sharpen their pencils.”

The department heads’ reactions were mixed. David Horn, the town’s dog control officer, volunteered to forgo his 2 percent raise next year to help control costs. John Trojanowsky, the Youth Bureau director, did not suggest cuts on the spot but readily agreed to meet with his staff to put together a list.

Town Assessor David C. Marrano offered the most specific ideas: $500 less for printing and advertising, $300 less for travel and meal allowances, and $300 less for dues and subscriptions. Those three cuts amount to less than one-third of a percent of the assessor’s budget of $354,872 for next year.

Town officials generally agreed that would be typical of the amount of savings that most department heads were likely to propose.

“If you’re going to come up with $75,000 in savings [townwide], that’s the most you’ll come up with,” Councilman Daniel Amatura said.

Marrano also told the board he was looking at ways to increase revenues, largely through clamping down on not-for- profit tax exemptions throughout the town.

“I want to get more aggressive with these people,” the assessor said. “I’m not about to pull exemptions from churches, but there’s a lot of people getting tax exemptions that I feel don’t deserve it.”

Monday’s meeting, however, focused on spending cuts, not potential revenue increases. Officials said they would need to cut about $300,000 to lower the proposed tax rate increase by 1.25 percentage points.

The cuts suggested by the department heads are expected to be presented at a public hearing on the budget at 8:30 p. m. Monday in Town Hall.

The proposed $8.01 million budget calls for a 2.4 percent overall spending increase. That translates to a tax rate increase of 2.97 percent for property owners in the town, outside of the two villages.

Projected rates would rise 0.41 percent for residents of the Lancaster portion of Depew and 2.78 percent for those in the Village of Lancaster.