Governor Cuomo Announces Support from 175 Local Elected Officials in Push to Cut Property Taxes

Outlines Proposal to Cut Property Taxes and Deliver Relief to Homeowners in Oneida County.

Albany, NY - March 18, 2014 - Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced support from 175 local elected officials for his plan to cut property taxes. The Governor also detailed his proposal to cut property taxes and encourage local governments to reduce costs earlier today at Mohawk Valley Community College in Oneida County.

“Sky-high property taxes have been driving families and businesses out of Upstate New York for far too long, but this year we have an opportunity to change the dynamic,” Governor Cuomo said. “Thanks to three years of responsible fiscal management, we now have an opportunity to cut property taxes, incentivize local governments to reduce costs, and provide more than $1 billion in real tax relief to millions of New Yorkers. In order for this to happen, the legislature must pass our property tax cut proposal this year. Today we heard from local leaders representing communities across the Mohawk Valley who have taken a stand in support of this goal. I commend them for joining us, and urge all New Yorkers to make their voices heard by calling on the legislature to pass property tax relief this year.”

Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente said, "We made progress in 2011 with the first-ever property tax cap enacted by Governor Cuomo. I commend him for his unwavering leadership to reduce the tax burden on our families and will work alongside him this year to make certain that we accomplish this."

Montgomery County Executive Matt Ossenfort said, “It is encouraging that Governor Cuomo has been able to push property tax relief to the forefront of the agenda in Albany while aggressively addressing the need for consolidation and shared services on the local level. I support the Governor in this effort and am looking forward to working with the new Legislature in Montgomery County as we continue our ongoing efforts to be more efficient and create economic opportunities for County residents.”

Chairman Vincent Bono of the Herkimer County Legislature said, “It is important for counties like Herkimer, that in order to move forward and grow we must look at creative ways of consolidation and stream-lining of government services. I support Governor Cuomo's property tax plan as a way to address the issue of burdensome property taxes and consolidation.”

Chairman Tom Quackenbush of the Montgomery County Legislature said, "I support and commend Governor Cuomo on his plan for property tax relief and consolidation, which is long overdue. I look forward to working with the Governor and County Executive Matt Ossenfort in giving these municipalities the tools they need to share services and cut taxes."

In addition to the individuals who spoke at today’s event in favor of the Governor’s push for property tax relief, the following local leaders have joined the ranks of hundreds of other elected officials from around the State in calling for property tax cuts this year:

FIRST NAME	LAST NAME	TITLE	MUNICIPALITY
Keith	Ahlstrom	Minority Leader	Chautauqua County Legislature
Edwin	Alvarez	Town Council Member	Town of Southeast
Robert	Anderson	Councilmember	City of Niagara Falls
Tony	Arquiett	Legislator	St. Lawrence County Legislature
Paul	Backus	Board Member	Town of Canton
Barry	Baker	Board Member	Town of Arietta
Ted	Banta	Supervisor	Town of Cairo
Rollin	Beattie	Board Member	Town of Potsdam
Adam	Bello	Supervisor	Town of Irondequoit
Vincent	Bono	Chairman	Herkimer County Legislature
Catherine	Borgia	Majority Leader	Westchester County Legislature
George	Borrello	Chairman, Economic Development	Chautauqua County Legislature
Noam	Bramson	Mayor	City of New Rochelle
Jim	Bunstone	Legislator	St. Lawrence County Legislature
Chris	Burdick	Supervisor	Town of Bedford
David	Button	Supervisor	Town of Canton
Rob	Calarco	Majority Leader	Suffolk County Legislator
Randy	Casale	Mayor	City of Beacon
Frank	Castiglia	Legislator	Oswego County Legislature
Frank	Catalina	Mayor	City of Peekskill
Tom	Catillaz	Trustee	Village of Saranac Lake
Jason	Chapin	Councilman	Town of New Castle
Carl	Chipman	Supervisor	Town of Rochester
Bonnie	Christian	Mayor	Village of South Nyack
Brett	Christy	Councilman	Town of Pomfret
J. Michael	Cindrich	Mayor	Village of Mount Kisco
Jason	Clark	Legislator	St. Lawrence County Legislature
Drew	Claxton	Councilmember	City of Peekskill
Greg	Cole	School Board Memeber	Silver Creek
Thomas	Constantine	Legislator	Schenectady County Legislature
Billy	Coughlin	Former County Legislator	Chautauqua County
Jose	Cruz	Board Member	Rochester City School Board
Robert	Cullen	Council Member	Town of Southeast
Ed	DeJaneiro	Legislator	Genesee County Legislature
Dave	Denenberg	Legislator	Nassau County Legislature
Carla	DeShaw	Mayor	Village of Canastota
Joe	Destefano	Mayor	City of Middletown
Jack	Diamond	Mayor	City of Glens Falls
Curlie	Dillard	Legislator	Orange County Legislature
AJ	Dolce	Mayor	City of Dunkirk
Randy	Douglas	Chairman	Essex County Board of Supervisors
Daniel	Dwyer	Mayor	City of Rensselaer
Sam	Dyer	Chairman	Clinton County Legislature
Paul	Dyster	Mayor	City of Niagara Falls
Cora	Edwards	Legislator	Sullivan County Legislature
Charlie	Evangelista	Supervisor	City of Geneva
Malik	Evans	Board Member	Rochester City School Board
Dan	Farfaglia	Legislator	Oswego County Legislature
Paul	Feiner	Supervisor	Town of Greenburgh
Bill	Ferebee	Vice Chairman/ Town Supervisor	Essex County Board of Supervisors/ Town of Keene
Tony	Fiala	Legislator	Broome County Legislature
Mark	Fleming	Legislator	Rensselear County Legislature
Maureen	Fleming	Supervisor	Town of Kent
Richard	Fontana	Council Member	Buffalo Common Council
Doug	Foster	Trustee	Village of Nyack
Carl	Fulgenzi	Town Council Member	Town of Mount Pleasant
Shayne	Gallo	Mayor	City of Kingston
Larry	Gardiner	Legislator	Greene County Legislature
Phil	Giardino	Board Member	Town of Fine
Norma	Gonslaves	Presiding Officer	Nassau County Legislature
Adelino	Gonzalez	Councilmember	Town of Dunkirk
Kristin	Grandenetti	Councilwoman	Niagara County Legislature
DuWayne	Gregory	Presiding Officer	Suffolk County Legislature
Peter	Grimm	Minority Leader	Rensselear County Legislature
Kara	Hahn	Legislator	Suffolk County Legislature
Wayne	Hall	Mayor	Village Hempstead
Don	Hammond	Trustee	Village of Nyack
Peter	Harckham	Legislator	Westchester County Legislature
Karl	Hax	Mayor	Village of Pulaski
Bob	Hayssen	Chair	Seneca County Board of Supervisors
Mike	Hein	County Executive	Ulster County
Hugh	Hill	Trustee	Village of Malone
Shawn	Hogan	Mayor	City of Hornell
Elizabeth	Hudak	Council Member	Town of Southeast
William "Billy"	Hughes	Supervisor- Hudson- 4th Ward	Columbia County Board of Supervisors
Gary	Hughes	Majority Leader	Schenectady County Legislature
Anthony	Jasenski	Chairman	Schenectady County Legislature
Ken	Jenkins	Legislator	Westchester County Board of Legislators
Barbara	Jeter-Jackson	Minority Leader	Dutchess County Legislature
Todd	Johnson	Supervisor	Town of Hanover
Billy	Jones	Chairman	Franklin County Legislature
Cindy	Kaleh	Legislator	Monroe County Legislature
Stephen	Keefe	Mayor	Village of Fredonia
Tim	Kelly	Board Member	Town of Pamelia
Warren	Kelly	Trustee	Village of Silver Creek
Judy	Kennedy	Mayor	City of Newburgh
Margaret "Peggy"	King	President	City of Schenectady City Council
Stephanie	Kiyak	Councilwoman	City of Dunkirk
Lynn	Kopka	City Council Member-At Large	Troy City Council
Al	Krupski	Legislator	Suffolk County Legislator
Michael	Kunzwiler	Minority Leader	Oswego County Legislature
Susan	Labuhn	Legislator	Cattaraugus County Legislature
Tom	Latimer	Supervisor	Town of Pierrepont
Tim	Lattimore	Legislator	Cayuga County Legislature
LeeAnn	Lazarony	Mayor	Town of Cassadaga
Larry	Legault	Supervisor	Town of Louisville
Harry	Lennon	Legislator	Greene County Legislature
Paula	Mahan	Supervisor	Town of Colonie
Joseph	Maiurano	Mayor	City of Norwich
Patricia	Manchester	Supervisor	Town of Fort Covington
Howard	Maneely	Supervisor	Town of Malone
Edward	Mangano	County Executive	Nassau County
Marty	Mannix	Board Member	Town of Plattsburgh
Jack	Marren	Chair	Ontario County Board of Supervisors
Peter	Martin	Supervisor, Saratoga Springs	Saratoga County Board of Supervisors
Joan	Maybury	Supervisor	Town of Mount Pleasant
Colleen	McCabe	Legislator	Broome County Legislature
Gary	McCarthy	Mayor	City of Schenectady
Dan	McCoy	County Executive	Albany County
Ronald	Mcdougall	Mayor	Village of Gouverneur
James	McFaddin	Mayor	Village of Norwood
J. Ryan	McMahon	Chairman	Onondaga County Legislature
John	Merwin	Supervisor	Town of Northeast
Mike	Michalski	Councilman	City of Dunkirk
Kevin	Millar	Mayor	Village of Owego
Marjorie	Miller	Supervisor	Town of Middletown
Marc	Molinaro	County Executive	Dutchess County
John	Mootooveren	CouncilMember	City of Schenectady City Council
Gerald	Morrow	Town Supervisor	Town of Chesterfield
Jake	Mulcahey	County Legislator	Oswego County Legislature
Ernie	Odierna	Deputy Supervisor and Councilmember	Town of Mamaroneck
Matthew	Ossenfort	County Executive	Montgomery County
Janet	Otto-Cassada	Mayor	Village ofWaddington
Carla	Palumbo	Councilmember	Rochester City Council
Catherine	Parker	Legislator	Westchester County Legislature
Don	Peck	Legislator	St. Lawrence County
Leesa	Perazzo	City Council Member	City of Schenectady
Leonard	Perfetti	Councilman	Town of Union
Charles	Pernice	Supervisor	Town of Norfolk
Nick	Piccolo	Mayor	Village of Silver Creek
Anthony	Picente	County Executive	County of Oneida
Carmen	Pineyro	Supervisor	Village of Freeport
Ellen	Polimeni	Mayor	City of Canadaigua
Randy	Preston	Supervisor	Town of Wilmington
Anthony	Purol	Trustee	Village of Silver Creek
Jonathan	Putney	Chairman	St. Lawrence County Legislature
Tom	Quackenbush	Chairman	Montgomery County Legislature
Clyde	Rabideau	Mayor	Village of Saranac Lake
Daniel	Reynolds	County Legislator	Broome County Legislature
Barbara	Rice	Legislator, Trustee	Franklin County, Village of Saranac Lake
Bill J.	Rivera	Councilman	City of Dunkirk
Tom	Roach	Mayor	City of White Plains
Van	Robinson	Common Council President	City of Syracuse
Rod	Rogers	School Board Memeber	Forestville CSD
Lou	Rosamilia	Mayor	City of Troy
H Bruce	Russell	Supervisor	Town of Bellmont
Laura	Schaefer	Legislator	Nassau County Leg.
Jay	Schneiderman	Deputy Presiding Officer	Suffolk County Legislator
Thomas	Scozzafava	Town Supervisor	Town of Moriah
Vincent	Seeley	Legislator	Greene County Legislature
Dave	Seeley	Town Board Member	Town of Irondequoit
Nancy	Seligson	Supervisor	Town of Mamaroneck
Jim	Smith	Board Member	Town of Canton
A. Max	Smith	Mayor	City of Oneida
Mike	Spano	Mayor	City of Yonkers
William	Spencer	Legislator	Suffolk County Legislature
Reginald	Spinello	Mayor	City Glen Cove
Jennifer	Stevenson	Councilmember	City of Ogdensburg
Erin	Sullivan Teta	City Council Member	City of Troy
Stacey	Szukala	Councilmember	City of Dunkirk
Todd	Tancredi	Supervisor	Town of Poughkeepsie
Brian	Tobin	Mayor	City of Cortland
Amy	Tressider	County Legislator	Oswego County Legislature
Paul	VanCott	Trustee	Village of Saranac Lake
Rosemarie	Walker	Legislator	Nassau County Legislature
Jean	Walsh	Supervisor	Town of Rosendale
Michael	Warren	Supervisor	Town of Marbletown
Van	White	President	Rochester City School Board
Jennifer	White	Mayor	Village of Nyack
Justin	Wilcox	Legislator	Monroe County Legislature
Ed	Williamson	Supervisor	Town of Granby
Mark	Woods	Treasurer	Town of Dunkirk
JoAnn	Yepsen	Mayor	City of Saratoga Springs
Ted	Young	Mayor	Village of Waterloo
Jason	Zona	Legislator	Niagara County Legislature

The Governor’s plan would freeze property taxes for two years in communities where the local government also takes steps to consolidate and share services, and would provide relief based on an individual homeowner’s ability to pay. During year two of the Governor’s freeze proposal, approximately 132,500 Mohawk Valley homeowners could save as much as $20 million, with an average benefit of $150. Under the circuit breaker proposal, approximately 76,000 households will qualify for an average real property personal income tax credit of $315, totaling $24 million in savings to Mohawk Valley residents.

Property Tax Freeze

The property tax freeze is a two year proposal that is designed to incentivize local governments to share services and reduce their financial burden on the taxpayer. New Yorkers will be eligible for property tax relief in the first year of the freeze if their local governments stay within the property tax cap. During the second year, the freeze will continue to provide relief to New Yorkers if their local governments remain within the property tax cap and also pursue concrete steps to consolidate, share services, and ultimately reduce costs. When fully implemented, the freeze would result in tax relief of up to $1 billion from local governments and school districts, with an average benefit of $354 for as many as 2.8 million taxpayers.

Circuit Breaker Based on Ability to Pay

Currently, as many as two million low- and middle-income New Yorkers pay an effective real property tax rate relative to income that exceeds their income tax rate. The Governor’s circuit breaker proposal would create a progressively distributed tax credit in order to provide relief based on an individual homeowner’s ability to pay. When fully implemented, the circuit breaker would provide approximately two million New Yorkers with an average benefit of $500.

“No Excuses”

Just two weeks ago, the Governor launched the “No Excuses” push to help pass his proposed property tax cuts. The initiative includes a website, testimonial from elected officials, advocacy groups, and homeowners who are burdened by high tax rates. The Governor is also urging New Yorkers to contact their legislators to make their voices heard. Click here to watch a video marking the start of the “No Excuses” initiative (for TV stations, a high-definition version can be downloaded here).

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