Across the region, the high costs that frustrated voters on Election Day are complicating town budgets for 2027. Diesel costs about two-thirds more than it did a year ago, and road salt prices are climbing nearly as fast. Local governments need diesel to run highway trucks and ambulances, and salt to keep roads safe through the winter.

Shandaken asked Ulster County to cover the cost of plowing and salting two county roads in town after rising prices made the work unaffordable, Supervisor Barbara Mansfield said.

The town had an agreement with the county to plow and salt Main Street in Phoenicia and Galli-Curci Road in Highmount. The county approved the request, said Amberly Campbell, assistant deputy to the county executive.

Voters interviewed at local polling places on Tuesday said they hoped the midterm election would bring relief from the cost of basic necessities.

“Food, gas prices, heating, everything is expensive,” said Corinn Shaver, 37, of Windham.

In Hurley, Jim McConnell, 57, described the financial strain on people with little room in their household budgets.

“It’s just ridiculous. The cost of fuel, and pretty much everything. Poor people are struggling,” he said.

Democrats will control the House and Senate next year, CBS News projected. The party flipped seven Senate seats for a majority of at least 54, with races in Alaska and Mississippi uncalled; officials are still counting votes in several House races.

The U.S. war with Iran has disrupted oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, helping drive up gasoline and diesel prices, according to the federal Energy Information Administration.

Regular gasoline in New York averaged $4.31 a gallon on Thursday, up about 39% from $3.11 a year earlier, according to AAA. Diesel jumped about 66%, to $6.47 a gallon from $3.89.

“We’re navigating through a sea of rising costs,” Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger said in her 2027 budget address on Oct. 1.

Diesel for county trucks and heavy equipment rose 63% over two years, while heating oil for some county buildings climbed 83%, Metzger said. The county’s state contract price for road salt will be about $110 a ton in 2027, up about 67% from $66 in 2025.

At the county’s average usage of 12,500 tons a year, that difference adds $550,000 each winter, she said.

Shandaken’s preliminary budget would raise spending on sand, salt, and calcium to $122,000 from $112,000, or about 9%. The highway machinery allocation for diesel, gasoline, and fluids would hold at $90,000.

Hurley’s preliminary budget would double contractual snow-removal spending to $200,000 from $100,000. That line doesn’t include wages for snow removal.

Hurley’s town board voted on Oct. 27 to override the state tax levy limit. Diesel and de-icing salt were among the costs putting pressure on the budget, Supervisor Michael Boms said.

Diesel costs rose about 72% compared with last year, Deputy Supervisor John Perry said. Salt will cost $110 a ton in 2027, up about 45% from $76 this year, Boms said.

A single ice storm uses $50,000 to $60,000 worth of salt, Perry said.

Olive’s preliminary budget would raise contractual snow-removal spending to $125,000 from $93,000, about 34% more. It doesn’t break that appropriation into separate amounts for diesel and salt.

Woodstock’s highway budget worksheet proposes $390,000 for snow removal, about 6% more than the $368,611 budgeted for 2026. The increase is in wages; contractual expenses would fall to $190,000 from $200,000. The worksheet doesn’t list separate 2027 amounts for diesel and de-icing salt.

Higher diesel prices are hitting highway and parks operations in Saugerties, Supervisor Fred Costello said.

“We suffer the same increases that everyone does,” he said.

The town’s preliminary budget would raise parks fuel funding to $12,500 from $10,500, or about 19%. The parks department had spent $13,323 on fuel by Aug. 31, more than next year’s proposed amount.

Highway fuel funding would hold at $125,000, though the highway department had spent $94,658 by Aug. 31, nearly matching the $98,377 it spent in all of 2025. Contractual snow-removal spending would rise to $215,000 from $210,000, about 2%.

Saugerties expects to stay within the state tax levy limit, Costello said. The town plans to use about $250,000 of an estimated $1.5 million surplus from this year to offset next year’s costs, he said.

The Greene County town of Windham increased proposed fuel spending for ambulances and police cars, Supervisor Tom Hoyt said.

“I did have to add a couple thousand dollars to my ambulance line item for diesel fuel,” he said.

To control winter maintenance costs, Windham will switch to a mix of road grit and salt, Hoyt said. Sticking with straight salt would have meant a larger increase, he said.

Hunter expects fuel costs to rise, Supervisor Sean Mahoney said, though he didn’t yet have specific figures or a road salt budget.

Greene County’s tentative $157.8 million budget flags diesel and road salt as concerns. A separate $500,000 increase in the Highway Fund would pay for more road surface treatments and new vehicles.

“Of concern within the Highway budget are expenditures on diesel fuel and road salt, each of which has risen considerably,” the county’s budget message said.

Isabella Schoonover is a staff reporter for The Overlook covering Woodstock, Saugerties, Hurley, and surrounding Ulster County communities. Send correspondence to isabella@theoverlooknews.com.

Connor Greco is a staff reporter for The Overlook covering Windham, Hunter, and surrounding Greene County communities. Send correspondence to connor@theoverlooknews.com.