Post by dgriffin on Jun 22, 2011 15:45:09 GMT -5
The devil is always in the details, of course, and in NY State there are a lot of devils. This article was written 3 weeks ago, but I don't know that anything in the bill changed in meantime. In addition to the pension costs mentioned below, the assessor can still raise your taxes by increasing your assessment and there is also a provision where the cap can be ignored if 60% of the voters in your school district say so. (Think of all those parents of young children who yearly run around pushing for higher school budgets. Hell ... just the school district list of employees might approach 60% of the population!) And it isn't clear how the cap applies to town and county taxes. I suppose it's even possible that a school district function could be transferred to the town and your town taxes would increase. That happened here not long ago when the town library funding was moved from the school district to the town's budget. This is typical NY State "lie straight to your face" politics. I'd feel safer buying a watch from some derelict on a street corner. [/b][/i]
What the 2 percent tax cap deal really means for Central New York taxpayers
Published: Wednesday, May 25, 2011, 6:00 AM
Updated:
Teri Weaver / The Post-Standard By Teri Weaver / The .
Syracuse, N.Y. -- New York leaders are close to a deal that would cap property tax increases, a move they say would temper rising tax bills for home and land owners across the state.
There’s just one catch: Under the new plan, individual property tax bills will likely continue to go up beyond the advertised 2 percent cap.
That’s because the proposal would allow local governments and school districts to ignore the cap if their pension costs increase by more than 2 percent — which has happened with regularity in New York in recent years.
The proposal would allow local governments to carve out other things from the cap, too, like expenses caused by hefty lawsuit settlements and potential revenues from new housing developments or businesses.
And, critics say, the plan introduced Tuesday by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver does nothing to limit other state-mandated costs to local communities at a time when the Legislature and Gov. Andrew Cuomo have cut aid to schools, cities, towns and villages.
Syracuse expects its pension costs to jump 42 percent in the 2011-12 fiscal year, to $28 million. Facing that kind of skyrocketing expense, the 2 percent cap may be a mirage.
“Unless you address those cost factors, the property tax cap is really just a symbolic, at most, gesture,” said Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner.
Silver, Cuomo and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos don’t see it that way. They say the latest version of a property tax cap will help homeowners and businesses plan for incremental tax increases in future years that come closer to matching the rate of inflation.
Moreover, Cuomo – who put the tax cap at the top of his agenda and crisscrossed the state to promote it – said he thinks it’s the single-most important development for New York’s economy.
“I believe it changes the trajectory of the state of New York,” the governor said Tuesday on Fred Dicker’s “Live from the State Capitol!” radio show.
“This is a very good plan,” Cuomo added about Silver’s version. “It really is. It’s exactly what we’ve been talking about.”
Lawmakers from Central New York said Tuesday they expected a vote on the tax cap before the legislative session ends June 20. Almost all of them said they could support Silver’s plan.
Most admitted there’s no guarantee homeowners would see their tax bills limited to 2 percent starting next year.
The Senate’s Finance Committee staff estimated the proposed exceptions in Silver’s bill would mean an average 3 percent property tax increase for homeowners next year.
“It’s not a cap,” said Assemblyman Don Miller, R-Clay, the only Central New York lawmaker on Tuesday who opposed the plan.
Where they stand
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver proposed a 2 percent property tax cap on Tuesday. The Senate approved a similar — but not identical — 2 percent cap in January. Here’s where the Central New York delegation stands:
How CNY Assembly members stand:
In favor:
• Brian Kolb, R-Canandaigua
• Sam Roberts, D-Syracuse
Leaning yes
• William Magnarelli, D-Syracuse
• Will Barclay, R-Pulaski
• Bill Magee, D-Nelson
• Robert Oaks, R-Macedon
Opposed
• Don Miller, R-Clay
How CNY senators voted:
In favor:
• John DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse
• David Valesky, D-Oneida
• Michael Nozzolio, R-Fayette
• Patty Ritchie, R-Oswegatchie
• Joseph Griffo, R-Rome
• James Seward, R-Milford
Silver, D-Manhattan, released his proposal after months of little action on an issue that Cuomo and the Republican-controlled Senate championed as vital to attracting more businesses and giving relief to homeowners.
It was greeted with praise by many pro-business organizations that backed Cuomo’s tax cap, including Syracuse’s CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity.
But Silver’s plan tweaked the governor’s version in a way that Skelos, R-Rockville Centre, has yet to fully embrace.
Silver, the leader of a house full of Downstate Democrats, wants to link the tax cap to rent control measures that benefit New York City area residents. Under Silver’s plan, the tax cap and rent control would expire at the same time. The current rent control law expires June 15.
Senate Republicans, whose support is based in Long Island and Upstate, would rather separate the two issues. But they stopped short of calling it a deal breaker.
“To tie it into something totally unrelated – depending on rent control – is not a good idea,” said Sen. John DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse. “If this is necessary to get a result, I would vote for it.”
Assemblyman Miller, meanwhile, is sticking to his own legislation that would outlaw property tax increases, a bill which has only a handful of supporters.
School district leaders and teachers unions – normally a powerful force in Albany – also oppose the tax cap, though for different reasons.
Three-fifths of the 47 Central New York school districts that voted on budgets this month asked for tax increases of more than 2 percent even though many also plan to lay off workers this summer. That’s because the state cut $1.3 billion in state aid this year for schools, with the promise of a $800 million replenishment next year.
That’s not enough to make ends meet now, school leaders say. Limiting tax increases to a prescribed cap – or to the rate of inflation, whichever is lower – makes things worse.
It might work for a year or two, said Chris Brown, the superintendent at the West Genesee School District, which cut its staff by 15 percent in the past three years.
But over time, school districts and governments will need even more state aid – which comes from income taxes – to teach kids and plow roads if they can’t raise enough local property tax dollars to pay the bills.
“Otherwise, if those things don’t happen and there’s a tax cap, parents need to be prepared for students to have far less opportunities at school,” Brown said.
Contact Teri Weaver at tweaver@syracuse.com or 470-2274.
What the 2 percent tax cap deal really means for Central New York taxpayers
Published: Wednesday, May 25, 2011, 6:00 AM
Updated:
Teri Weaver / The Post-Standard By Teri Weaver / The .
Syracuse, N.Y. -- New York leaders are close to a deal that would cap property tax increases, a move they say would temper rising tax bills for home and land owners across the state.
There’s just one catch: Under the new plan, individual property tax bills will likely continue to go up beyond the advertised 2 percent cap.
That’s because the proposal would allow local governments and school districts to ignore the cap if their pension costs increase by more than 2 percent — which has happened with regularity in New York in recent years.
The proposal would allow local governments to carve out other things from the cap, too, like expenses caused by hefty lawsuit settlements and potential revenues from new housing developments or businesses.
And, critics say, the plan introduced Tuesday by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver does nothing to limit other state-mandated costs to local communities at a time when the Legislature and Gov. Andrew Cuomo have cut aid to schools, cities, towns and villages.
Syracuse expects its pension costs to jump 42 percent in the 2011-12 fiscal year, to $28 million. Facing that kind of skyrocketing expense, the 2 percent cap may be a mirage.
“Unless you address those cost factors, the property tax cap is really just a symbolic, at most, gesture,” said Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner.
Silver, Cuomo and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos don’t see it that way. They say the latest version of a property tax cap will help homeowners and businesses plan for incremental tax increases in future years that come closer to matching the rate of inflation.
Moreover, Cuomo – who put the tax cap at the top of his agenda and crisscrossed the state to promote it – said he thinks it’s the single-most important development for New York’s economy.
“I believe it changes the trajectory of the state of New York,” the governor said Tuesday on Fred Dicker’s “Live from the State Capitol!” radio show.
“This is a very good plan,” Cuomo added about Silver’s version. “It really is. It’s exactly what we’ve been talking about.”
Lawmakers from Central New York said Tuesday they expected a vote on the tax cap before the legislative session ends June 20. Almost all of them said they could support Silver’s plan.
Most admitted there’s no guarantee homeowners would see their tax bills limited to 2 percent starting next year.
The Senate’s Finance Committee staff estimated the proposed exceptions in Silver’s bill would mean an average 3 percent property tax increase for homeowners next year.
“It’s not a cap,” said Assemblyman Don Miller, R-Clay, the only Central New York lawmaker on Tuesday who opposed the plan.
Where they stand
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver proposed a 2 percent property tax cap on Tuesday. The Senate approved a similar — but not identical — 2 percent cap in January. Here’s where the Central New York delegation stands:
How CNY Assembly members stand:
In favor:
• Brian Kolb, R-Canandaigua
• Sam Roberts, D-Syracuse
Leaning yes
• William Magnarelli, D-Syracuse
• Will Barclay, R-Pulaski
• Bill Magee, D-Nelson
• Robert Oaks, R-Macedon
Opposed
• Don Miller, R-Clay
How CNY senators voted:
In favor:
• John DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse
• David Valesky, D-Oneida
• Michael Nozzolio, R-Fayette
• Patty Ritchie, R-Oswegatchie
• Joseph Griffo, R-Rome
• James Seward, R-Milford
Silver, D-Manhattan, released his proposal after months of little action on an issue that Cuomo and the Republican-controlled Senate championed as vital to attracting more businesses and giving relief to homeowners.
It was greeted with praise by many pro-business organizations that backed Cuomo’s tax cap, including Syracuse’s CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity.
But Silver’s plan tweaked the governor’s version in a way that Skelos, R-Rockville Centre, has yet to fully embrace.
Silver, the leader of a house full of Downstate Democrats, wants to link the tax cap to rent control measures that benefit New York City area residents. Under Silver’s plan, the tax cap and rent control would expire at the same time. The current rent control law expires June 15.
Senate Republicans, whose support is based in Long Island and Upstate, would rather separate the two issues. But they stopped short of calling it a deal breaker.
“To tie it into something totally unrelated – depending on rent control – is not a good idea,” said Sen. John DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse. “If this is necessary to get a result, I would vote for it.”
Assemblyman Miller, meanwhile, is sticking to his own legislation that would outlaw property tax increases, a bill which has only a handful of supporters.
School district leaders and teachers unions – normally a powerful force in Albany – also oppose the tax cap, though for different reasons.
Three-fifths of the 47 Central New York school districts that voted on budgets this month asked for tax increases of more than 2 percent even though many also plan to lay off workers this summer. That’s because the state cut $1.3 billion in state aid this year for schools, with the promise of a $800 million replenishment next year.
That’s not enough to make ends meet now, school leaders say. Limiting tax increases to a prescribed cap – or to the rate of inflation, whichever is lower – makes things worse.
It might work for a year or two, said Chris Brown, the superintendent at the West Genesee School District, which cut its staff by 15 percent in the past three years.
But over time, school districts and governments will need even more state aid – which comes from income taxes – to teach kids and plow roads if they can’t raise enough local property tax dollars to pay the bills.
“Otherwise, if those things don’t happen and there’s a tax cap, parents need to be prepared for students to have far less opportunities at school,” Brown said.
Contact Teri Weaver at tweaver@syracuse.com or 470-2274.
