Report On Property Tax Relief Frames Debate For Change

ALBANY (June 3, 2008)—The following is a statement from state Sen. Darrel J. Aubertine (D-Cape Vincent) regarding the preliminary report of findings and recommendations from the New York State Commission on Property Tax Relief:

“I’d like to applaud the work done by Chairman Suozzi and Executive Director Reid. Property tax relief is desperately needed in my district and all of New York State. The commission’s hard work in developing these recommendations and findings provides us with a framework for debate, starting with school taxes. We must make the most of this opportunity to bring about some real change in how we pay for our children’s education.

“The biggest proposals of a cap on tax levy increases, a circuit breaker system for relief programs and a closer inspection of unfunded mandates could be ideas whose time has come. We must work out the details and continue to look at ways to reduce the property taxes for all New Yorkers, especially small businesses and people on fixed incomes. And in doing so, we must also never lose sight of how important it is we provide our children with a quality education.

“We have the framework. I look forward to reviewing the details of this report and the final version which will be submitted later this year. I’m also excited to begin the very important task of working in a bipartisan way to come up with real solutions. If we work together, we can bring about the change New York needs. This is just the first step, but we can’t continue to let a quality education for our children compete with our ability to afford owning our homes, farms and businesses.”