taxes

City Council President Marianne Clattenberg got a little worked up at Monday night's council meeting during a discussion of a proposed local property-tax cap that some Albany politicians are pushing.

“Why do they need us?" Clattenberg said. "They’re going to tell us what we can charge for property tax and then they’re going to tell us what we have to pay. They don’t even need local governments. They want control of everything. Albany is crazy right now.

"This whole sham of a property-tax cap is just a political ploy by the governor’s office to act like they're for the people," Clattenberg added. "So they say one thing to the people and then go the other way to stab them in the back."

At issue was a proposed resolution to send a message to Albany politicians, "no tax cap without mandate relief." The resolution will state that the legislature shouldn't approve a property-tax cap without eliminating mandated expenses.

A vote to place the resolution on the next council business agenda passed 6-3, with Rosemary Christian, Bob Bialkowski and Bill Cox voting no.

Cox argued that the city should be ready to make any spending cuts necessary without tax increases.

"We have other things we can cut," Cox said. "We need to give our property owners and our citizens tax relief. We can’t do it to them unless we take a stand, draw a line in the sand say, 'no more taxes.'"

Councilman Frank Ferrando said he was concerned that if a tax cap is enacted without mandate relief, the city will be forced to cut vital city services and eliminate key city jobs.

Albany, Ferrando said, shouldn't be dictating to local governments how to raise and spend money.

"If we're forced into that situation that could create real problems for our community," Ferrando said. "If we're in a situation where we need to make those decisions, that’s different. We will be making those decisions. We will make those hard decisions, but they shouldn’t be making them for us."

City Manager Jason Molino said mandated expenses on employee pensions, health insurance and health costs continue to escalate. Next year, for example, the city is looking at a $361,000 increase in mandated retirement benefit costs, and under the property-tax cap proposal, taxes could only go up by $72,000, leaving a $289,000 shortfall.

Foreclosure proceedings have begun against 68 county properties because of unpaid taxes, including the Le Roy Pontillo's location, according to County Treasurer Scott German.

Pontillo's owes for three years of back taxes, including school, town, village and county, totaling $24,261.

The delinquent property owners have until Jan. 14 to make final payment on their back taxes to avoid having the property sold at auction.

The auction will be scheduled for some time in March or April.

German said typically, 50 to 55 of the property owners will settle their tax issues prior to foreclosure.

All of the property owners have been sent letters, and notices have been published in two daily newspapers, with additional notifications pending.

With unanimous conscent Monday night, the Batavia City Council agreed to move forward with a plan to provide some tax relief to homeowners who undertake renovations.

In September there will likely be a public hearing on the plan, which will provide a tax credit over an eight-year period on the increased assessed value caused by improvements.

"This is important because, even if you do improvements, the value doesn’t necessarily change, but if the value does change because of that improvement, you can get an exemption on the increase of the assessment," City Manager Jason Molino said.

The exemption is possible by state law, which allows for a municipal government to institute the tax credit. The credit can be spread over eight years, with no tax on the increased assessed value, and 12.5 percent of tax on the increase being added each year.

The homeowner must make at least a $3,000 improvement, and the assessor must find that the improvement, not some other factor, caused the increased assessment. 

"I think this is long over due," Councilman Bill Cox said. "I think it will encourage people to improve their homes and it’s a sign that the City Council wants to encourage people to improve their neighborhoods."

Councilman Frank Ferrando also spoke in favor of the tax exemption.

"I like the idea that it’s the community investing in itself," Ferrando said.

It's called a "sweep." Imagine if all the money for the state's various special funds were on a big table, and Gov. David Paterson reached out his arm and dragged it across the top of those stack of bills and pushed the greenbacks into a giant gunny sack labeled, "General Fund."

New York has been doing it for years -- taking money earmarked for dozens of special programs, collected from dedicated fees, and using the funds to make up budget imbalances.

"Much of it is money that would be expended but the time has not come up yet for it to be spent," said County Clerk Don Read. "In (sweeping), they tend to make liars out of us who have to collect that money and tell people (what it’s used for)."

Two examples out of the County Clerk's Office: document fees and snowmobile license fees. The state has taken more than $500,000 from that fund over the past three years, Read said.

The first fee is used to fund grants for cities, schools, libraries and other smaller agencies to store, maintain and retain important records, and to modernize old systems.The snowmobile fee -- $90 for a non-snowmobile club member, $45 for members -- is used to maintain trails and facilities for snowmobilers.

Paterson's office is planning a $1 million sweep from the snowmobile fund this year.

"By sweeping out that money, there’s less to distribute to the grants, so a number of grants just don’t get funded," Read said. "Yet, we still have to tell the people that’s what we collect the money for."

The New York Post recently ran a story about Albany sweeping $8.5 million from a fund dedicated to building a veteran's retirement home.

Photo: Don Read from a previous story about license plates.

Some members of public employees unions in New York are bucking their union bosses and saying they should give back their 4-percent raises, according to Associated Press.

"I talked to my friends and neighbors who are losing their jobs and taking pay cuts and for me to get a raise, I functionally have to ask them to pay for it," Regan said in an interview with The Associated Press. He said he hasn't heard from anyone who opposes his view.

In other budget news, a group calling itself Better Choice for Budgeting Campaign, is calling on higher taxes and closing tax loopholes for Wall Street financiers and hedge fund managers.

“When you look at hedge fund managers making millions and millions of dollars and Wall Street having caused a great deal of the economic turmoil we find ourselves in, they should really help pay for it,” said Sen. Neil Breslin.

And while New York's budget is a week late today, Albany's Democrats and Republics are squabbling over procedure, according to the Times-Union.

Senate Democrats gathered on Wednesday to roll out an ambitious set of reforms to New York's budget process. Republicans shot back that the majority would do better to devote their time to the work at hand, and lambasted Democrats for failing to follow budget reforms that are already on the books.

Dr. Richard F. Daines is on a crusade. The one-time Morman missionary thinks people should not consume sugary drinks.

He wants the state to impose a one-cent-per-ounce tax on these beverages. He figures the tax would reduce consumption by 15 percent. He also estimates the tax will help raise $1 billion for the state.

And if you happen to believe this is just one more government intrusion on personal choice, then he thinks you're a dupe of the soft-drink lobby.

He ridiculed what he called the “personal choice” argument that government should stay out of people’s kitchens, saying it was being promulgated by “AstroTurf false-flag operations” that are really supported by the soda pop industry.

Read the story in the New York Times.

At a time when New York is struggling to close a $9.2 billion budget deficit, the state's workers represented by labor unions received a 4-percent pay increase April 1.

The wage hike will saddle taxpayers with another $400 million in annual expenses to cover.

The contracts with the Civil Service Employees Association and the Public Employee Federation were negotiated by former Gov. Eliot Spitzer in 2007.

Gov. David Paterson thinks the unions should turn down the raises, according to Business First.

"All public employees are a critical part of our state government. They deliver essential public services and, for that, they deserve our respect," he said Thursday. "But New York remains mired in a fiscal crisis of nearly unprecedented magnitude that will require real sacrifices. In agreeing to forego these scheduled 4-percent salary increases, the leaders of New York’s public employee unions have a real and concrete opportunity to demonstrate they understand the dire nature of this fiscal and economic crisis, and that they are willing to become a serious partner in addressing it.”

Unions flatly stated they will not budge. They say their contracts were fairly negotiated and must be honored.

“PEF will not reopen its contract with the state of New York,” said Kenneth Brynien, president of the Latham-based union that represents 58,000 white-collar state workers.

“What people don’t seem to grasp is, if you break a contract, you’re setting a terrible precedent. It ignores that you have legally binding documents,” said Stephen Madarasz, spokesman for CSEA.

There are 196,375 workers on the state payroll, and 94 percent of them are represented by a union.

At one time, Batavia School District officials spoke of a possible 10-percent tax increase on local property owners, but the final approved budget includes only a 1.23 percent increase.

District Business Manager Scott Rozanski told The Batavian's news partner WBTA, that past years' conservative budgeting -- underestimating revenue and holding a line on expenses -- has made it easier for the district to weather big cuts in state aid.

"There may be a greater impact next year and in future years if the trend continues," Rozanski said.

The 1.23-percent increase works out to 27 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, so on a home assessed at $80,000, the taxpayer will pay the school district an additional $21.60.

Rozanski said that over the past few months, the district has been able to cut expenses, which contributed to the district's ability to hold down the tax increase.

WBTA has posted a historical chart of tax increases (and decreases) from the district as well as an MP3 of its interview with Rozanski (click here).

Voters will be asked to approve the budget May 18.

County taxpayers will save more than $1 million in interest payments, thanks to an effort by County Treasurer Scott D. German to refinance four old bond issues.

German got permission from the County Legislature in January to try to refinance the bonds, and closed on all four issues -- from 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2001 -- on March 16.

The total savings turned out to be $1,113,632.50 over the next six years.

"We did better in the market place than we anticipated, we did about 10% better than expected,” German said in a press release today. "I couldn’t be happier to help provide these savings to the taxpayers.

The $10.7 million in bonds helped build the court facility, make improvements to the county building and old courthouse, build the GCC technology center and renovate the county nursing home.

From the press release:

Since we are experiencing low rates of interest in the bond market, German asked Fiscal Advisors, the county’s financial advisor, to take a look at refinancing  to see if it was worth while, “as it turned out it was a gigantic savings to the taxpayers,” German said.  “It is not often that I can save taxpayers over a million dollars, I am so glad I asked the question,” German said. “Bottom line, this is a great savings to Genesee County taxpayers."

Notice of foreclosure for unpaid taxes have been filed against more than a dozen property owners in the city.

Property owners have until May 14 to pay the back taxes or face foreclosure and have their properties put up for auction.

The properties listed by the city, with amounts owed, are:

606-622 E. Main St., Andrew Mistler, $23,375
643 Ellicott St., Rear, Chess, LLC, $306
13-15 Jackson St., Rear, C.L. Carr Properties, LLC, $2,939
4 Cherry St., Barbara A. Suozzi, $15,876
507 Ellicott St., Margaret J. Colantonio, $15,389
20 Franklin St., Maxin P. Johnson, $14,527
151 Harvester Ave., Jeffrey C. & Diane M. Shultz, $12,191
3 Manhattan Ave., David R. Foley, $21,190
16 Oak St., Mary M. Sorce, $10,707
11-13 Raymond Ave, Philip R. Zickl, Jr., $17,298
48 Riverview Parkway, DVM Corp., $649
21 South Lyon St., Richard S. and Tamara E. Ishmael, $21,544
132 Summit St., Thomas and Mary L. Geary, $4,705
1 Union St., Douglas C. and Lori A. Veltz, $21,027
308 Washington Ave., Rose L. Nigro, $3,585

One name that may jump out at readers is Mistler. I spoke briefly with Ken Mislter about his properties and he said there was a misunderstanding with the city. He said he's been working with the city to resolve the issue and the matter will be settled shortly.

This list originally appeared in the PennySaver. Part of the original list was 643 Ellicott St., Rear, owned by Hanson Aggregates. Those taxes have been paid, according to City Clerk Heidi Parker.

The properties listed below were reportedly foreclosed on by Genesee County for non-payment of taxes.  They will be auctioned off March 27 at Bontrager's.

The properties listed as owned by Genesee County are properties that were not sold at the last auction.

TOWN OF ALABAMA 15.-1-42 SHAMROCK FRANK C KENYON AVE. TOWN OF ALABAMA 6.-1-79 COUNTY OF GENESEE 789 LEWISTON ROAD TOWN OF ALEXANDER 11.-1-40.12 UNKNOWN GENESEE STREET TOWN OF ALEXANDER 15.-1-29 CAPWELL THOMAS 4011 COOKSON ROAD TOWN OF BATAVIA 13.-1-107.1 COUNTY OF GENESEE EAST MAIN STREET ROAD TOWN OF BATAVIA 3.-1-114 MOONEY JUDY L 7881 LEWISTON ROAD TOWN OF BERGEN 6.-1-19.1 CONTE RICHARD E 6567 NORTH LAKE ROAD TOWN OF BERGEN 11.-1-26 DURRANT SHARON & DAVID J 6422 WEST SWEDEN ROAD TOWN OF BYRON 5.-2-44 TEAMCO CORPORATION 6657 COLE ROAD TOWN OF BYRON 7.-1-13.12 STANTON BONNIE 6902 ROUTE 237 TOWN OF LEROY 30.-1-94 FIX JOHN AND LORIE WARSAW ROAD TOWN OF PAVILION 15.-1-9.21 THE ESTATE OF GERALICE RAE BURGH STARR ROAD TOWN OF PEMBROKE 18.-1-52 CAPWELL THOMAS J SCRIBNER ROAD VILLAGE OF ALEXANDER 2.-3-20.1 FULLER JEREMY J 3438 TELEPHONE ROAD VILLAGE OF LEROY 7.-1-65 NORSTRAND DANIEL 1 PLEASANT STREET VILLAGE OF LEROY 7.-2-11 NORSTRAND DANIEL 8 PLEASANT STREET

The State Department of Taxation and Finance notified Industrial Development Agencies (IDAs) earlier this month of a “cost-recovery tax" on revenues, included in the 2009-10 budget, to cover costs of state government services; even though the state statute required the notification by Nov. 1, 2009.

In regard to this, Sen. Michael Ranzenhofer has issued the following statement:

“The most recent development in New York’s tax epic is to punish development agencies for helping businesses locate in our community and create jobs. The 'cost-recovery tax' is nothing but a tax on job creation, effectively hurting efforts of community business leaders to bring jobs to Western New York.

Revenues generated by IDAs are reinvested. The 'cost-recovery tax' steals economic development dollars from our community. Even worse, the tax is based on revenues for 2008, most of which have already been reinvested.

Local industrial development agencies already pay a Bond Issuance Charge to the state for government services. The 'cost-recovery tax' forces local agencies to pay double and this is excessive. After the Authority Budget Office collects the job-creation tax, its budget will increase by 300 percent.

Over the next few days and weeks, I plan to work with my colleagues in state government to defeat yet another job-killing tax.”

Congressman Chris Lee attended an auction yesterday.

He wasn't there to buy an old Queen Anne sideboard. He wanted to get a firsthand look at the nation's debt getting sold to overseas concerns.

The auction was held at the Bureau of Public Debt, and it featured $10 billion of our national debt being auctioned off as four-week treasury bills.

“As our national debt has risen to a record high, I wanted to get a firsthand look at the process by which our debt is auctioned off to China and other foreign countries,” said Congressman Lee. “We need to get serious about reining in government spending and decreasing our debt. We cannot afford to be beholden these foreign counties any longer.”

Lee then met with Commissioner of the Public Debt Van Zeck.

I wonder if he asked how much it costs to administer a Bureau of Public Debt?

Full press release after the jump:

Press release:

Congressman Lee Attends Auction Of Our Nation’s Debt
Lawmaker Attends Public Auction to Witness the Result of Borrow and Spend Policies

WASHINGTON – Congressman Chris Lee (NY-26) today attended an auction at the Bureau of the Public Debt to witness exactly how our $12.3 trillion debt is being auctioned off to foreign countries and individuals. The auction featured $10 billion of our national debt being auctioned off as a 4-week Treasury bill. According to records held by the Bureau of Public Debt, Asian countries hold nearly 50 percent of our nation’s debt.
 
“As our national debt has risen to a record high, I wanted to get a firsthand look at the process by which our debt is auctioned off to China and other foreign countries,” said Congressman Lee. “We need to get serious about reining in government spending and decreasing our debt. We cannot afford to be beholden these foreign counties any longer.”
 
While at the debt auction, Congressman Lee met with Commissioner of the Public Debt Van Zeck and other officials within the Department to discuss the process and concerns he has with our record-high national debt. Purchasers of the debt participate through an online interface managed by the Bureau and the Federal Reserve Bank in New York, and the sale of $10 billion in Treasury securities was completed in mere minutes. Bureau officials commented that the frequency of auctions has risen in recent years to accommodate the need to borrow more money.
 
“The longer we continue to borrow and spend the more future generations will be forced to pay,” added Congressman Lee. “The time to reduce spending and pay down our debt is now.”

A preliminary budget approved by the Batavia City Council cuts $376,000 in spending from a previous draft, allowing the proposed property-tax increase to be cut in half.

Instead of anticipating a 3-percent tax increase, city property owners can expect an increase of just under 1.5 percent if the budget gets final approval following a Feb. 8 public hearing.

A good portion of the cut in expenses comes from a $150,000 reduction in the contingency fund. That fund might be needed if the city's unions win its any arbitration cases.

"As I mentioned, it's (cutting the contingency fund) a moderate risk," City Manager Jason Molino said following the meeting. "There's the potential there that there could be retroactive awards that could exceed that, and the city's fund balance position isn't where it should be now, though we're building it. It could be very difficult. One thing that has to be understood is that wages and benefits aren't what they used to be -- all work forces and city employees and unions have to understand that, and this is really their opportunity to recognize that and react to that. The community doesn't have the ability fund these things and in the future we're not going to be able to, and that's just something we're all going to have to react to."

In 2009, the city was forced to pay out $235,000 to the Police Benevolent Association after the union won its arbitration against the city. The city and PBA have yet to resolve all contract issues and the city will be three years behind in potential police raises in March. Two additional union contracts for city workers expire at the end of March.

Both Molino and Council President Marianne Clattenburg agree that some large settlement is likely.

"Something the unions are going to need to realize is that the city does not have the ability to provide that level of benefits," Molino said.

Cutting the property-tax rate increase in half reduces revenue by only $84,000. The additional expense cuts in the budget come from an anticipated $322,000 drop in sales tax revenue.

The spending plan now stands at $5,441,630.

The revised budget also cuts $105,000 from equipment reserve funds for police, fire, public works and facilities.

"They (the Council) did not feel they could support anything more than what was adopted," Clattenburg said. "We're just going to have to continue to live within our means."

Elimination of the ambulance service in 2009 means the city will be spending less money overall in 2010/11, according to City Manager Jason Molino's annual budget message.

The overall expense -- all budget lines -- for the city will be down $1.2 million, or 5.48 percent.

However, the General Fund expense will increase $183,116. The city must also continue to build its fund balance in order to be able to handle unanticipated events and put the city on a sound financial footing.

So a property tax increase of 3.07 percent is necessary, Molino wrote. It would raise the rate to $10.50 per $1,000. That works out to about $25 per year more for a home owner with an average valued house of $80,000.

Increased expenses for the city include:

• New York State Retirement Costs: Up $200,000 because the state's pension fund losses have exceeded more than $44 billion. All municipalities in the state are being forced to make up the difference.
• Police: The police department budget is up $74,000 following this summer's arbitration settlement.
• Fire: The fire budget is up $412,000 following the severance/settlement agreement related to elimination of the ambulance service. Overtime is down $35,000, but a big part of the increase is making up for increased state retirement costs.
• Contingency: Up $100,000 to plan for an unknown settlement with three of the city's unions currently in negotiations on new contracts.
• Health Insurance Reserve: The city is self-funded for now, but there is no reserve for an unexpected critical expense. Add, $60,000.

There are also some notable cost reductions for the city:

• DPW's budget is down $240,000, but there is still apparently money for required equipment replacements. The average age of DPW equipment is 24 years.
• The city is no longer paying back prior years' deficits at a rate of $250,000.
• The 2009/10 fiscal year was the first time in three years that the city wasn't engaged in temporary borrowing to pay bills. That means the city won't be making $33,000 in interest payments for a prior year's loans.

The proposed budget includes a 1.5-percent raise for 10 management employees.

Molino's budget notes that, "Over the course of the past three years the City has faced a lingering $2.2 million general fund deficit, significant cash flow deficiencies and deficits in all other operating funds."

This led the city to layoff 23 staff members and not fill 15 other staff positions. During those three years: there were no wage increases for union members or management; temporary borrowing was necessary to pay bills; and the ambulance service was eliminated, dispatch was consolidated and maintenance deferred.

"City staff has sharpened their pencils, adapted to crisis management and tapped into their creative and innovative minds to maintain service levels at reasonable costs," Molino writes. "As a result, the City of Batavia over the past three years has, by a slim margin, eliminated its prior fund balance deficits and begun to plan for what improvements and investments will be needed in order to maintain a sustainable community for our citizens."

Are you ready for your property taxes to go up another 7.7 percent?

That's what state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli says will happen in two years when $2 billion in federal stimulus money now being used for schools dries up.

The D&C reports:

DiNapoli said in a report Monday that unless the federal aid is renewed or replaced by state aid, schools will be hard-pressed to make up the loss of revenue. DiNapoli said about $2.8 billion in federal stimulus money went to schools this fiscal year, of which $1.6 billion restored proposed education aid cuts.