October, 2009

The recent mailing from you regarding property taxes and the STAR rebates ignores or glosses over several important elements: How you intend to pay for the STAR checks, and true reform versus short-sighted relief. With the state in economic crisis, now is no time for further feel-good expenditure absent specific long-term reform goals. You said in your mailer that you were working on a solution to our sky-high property taxes but the STAR checks do little or nothing to really end the burden of crushing property taxes. Other than service cuts or further increases in taxes and fees I can think of no way - save for borrowing against the future - that STAR can continue as it has in the past. If you know of any other ways to pay for STAR, please let me know what they are!

As well, I firmly believe that property taxpayers across the state support and would benefit greatly by a shift of education funding from property taxes to an income-based system and a return to a graduated income tax. Myself, along with Jeff Green, a fellow Kent resident, have been active in this fight and worked to press the County Legislature and the Towns of Kent and Putnam Valley to pass resolutions in support of Assembly member Kevin Cahill's "Equity in Education Act" (A6009) or (S5118 - Schneiderman.) which they all have done; can I have your assurance that you will support this reform vision and Mr. Schneiderman's bill in the Senate?

It is well known that this proposal for reform would resolve many problems for property tax payers, renters and others, who are being crushed under the burden of property tax-based education funding. STAR was put into place as an attempt to alleviate some of the pain of ever increasing property taxes, but it requires funding that we just do not have any longer, and checks are sent to “each and every property tax payer”, rich or poor, as your mailing states, rather than only those really in need; that is a travesty. Personally, I feel these problems could be resolved by returning to a broad, graduated income tax, as the Cahill/Schneiderman bills call for, from which the $25 billion required for state-wide education funding, would be found. Studies by the NY Fiscal Policy Institute have found that more than 90% of NY's taxpayers (voters) would see an actual reduction in their over-all tax bills if this approach were to become law; the only thing missing are vision, commitment and courage.

We need property tax REFORM, not superficial relief. We need an end to oppressive and unsustainable residential property taxes to fund education and change from a property tax to an income-based system. We need equal opportunity in education for all New York kids, whether from rich or poor districts. We need a return to true progressive income taxation so the rich start to pay what is arguably their fair share again, and to close tax loopholes. We need school district (and other) consolidation to save currently wasted resources and tax dollars inherent in the local district model. We need to stop taxing our precious farmland and small farmers out of existence, forcing them to sell their land into more development. We need to stop forcing our citizens, especially seniors, out of their homes if they can’t pay out-of-control property taxes; this approach would give “home-security” to all segments of our society, whether rich, middle-class, or poor, senior or beginning families. We also need both school and local taxes included in property tax reform.

Victor Tiship