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And that is NEVER going to happen, because the Cronies need a place to land with their plum appointments. The more Districts, the more "jobs" can be handed out.
It will not happen until voters take an interest in their government, 30% turnout tells me they don't care.
Sometimes things need to get really bad before they get better, like Bell, California where they woke up one morning and decided that an $800K salary for a city manager and $400k for a police chief was too much, you have to wonder when people will take notice on LI.
Mangano did just that, he cut his own pay and over $1Million from the county executive office. And if he did switch to a 401k, would labor unions follow?...HELL NO. Red Herring.
"Suozzi's example of small increases"???? He and the dem controlled legislature raised taxes almost 40% over the ten years preceding Mangano (up to 75% tax increase for many b/c of messed up assessment system), and had planned for 4% increases every year for the next five years. This is not including all the other nickel-and-dime excise taxes (fees) Suozzi and the Dems introduced during the last decade. Our taxes would be a lot higher under Suozzi. He also left a huge deficit for us to deal with.
They promised to cut spending and to NOT raise taxes. And they are living up to this. That is the medicine the county needs.
Yes, Suozzi's example of small increases, the plan was to have a small increase over the next few years. Now, yes taxes were raised quite a bit his first year in office, and the Dem leg raised taxes the year before he took office. In fact Suozzi ran on that large increase he planned on his first year in office and won by a 2-1 margin in doing so back in 2001.
Of course the reason that increase was needed in the first place is because Gullotta and the previous GOP legislature ran the county so far into the ground we were facing deficits of upwards of $300 million. The whole mess from the late 90's was why Pataki set up NIFA in the first place.
Since that increase in 2003 (which was Suozzi's first budget) the line was held on taxes until a 3.9% increase his last year in office.
Fact of the matter is we can't never ever raise taxes, that played a big role in getting us into that massive disaster under Gullotta. Controlled, small increases over time is sometimes needed. Yes, it sucks, no one likes to pay higher taxes, but you can only hold the line for so long until something gives. Over the past 8 years, the county raised taxes once, by 3.9%, and had seven years with no increases, that can't go on forever. Suozzi's budget plans called for small increases over the next few years in the 3-4% range, which would have been about a total increase of about $150 (about $50 per year) over a three year period. Mangano getting rid of that blew a massive hole into the budget. The revenue from that which has been lost has not even been remotely been made up through Mangano cuts, and what he has actually cut is aimed at the most vulnerable.
A sidenote to that is the whole tax issue is the fact that both Venditto and Murray have raised taxes in the TOB and TOH respectively FAR more than Suozzi did and proposed as county exec. Hell back in 2009 when Suozzi was getting ripped for the 3.9% increase in the county taxes (which was the first increase since his first year in office) Venditto jumped up the Town of Oyster Bay taxes by 11% but the same mouthpieces that ripped Suozzi were oh so silent on Venditto even though he raised taxes by much more and has throughout his tenure.
Also as far as the assessment goes, the change in the assessment process had nothing to do with Suozzi. It was a change that was court ordered prior to Suozzi even taking office, which was done because the old assessment system was even more screwed up than the current one ( in some cases you had people in homes being sold for $750,000 paying the same or even less in taxes than those in $300,000 homes). Massapequa btw was one of the areas that benefited from the court ordered change in assessment as it was shown to have been over assessed under the old system which dated back to 1938.
What right wing economics are crashing western Europe?
Europe as a whole (with the possible exception of certain Nordic countries) has been veering to the right along with America in the last 30 years. They are seeing benefits being cut and calls for austerity in the face of mounting debt in places like Greece. Austerity will not save the Eurozone and it will not save the US economy. When people have no jobs and no money, and the wealthy and corporations are not spending, the only solution to increase government spending. Instead, here, as in Europe, they are cutting spending - except on bailing out banks and bank executives.
This transcends party lines. US Democrats these days are further to the right now than they have been in many decades. The UK and Canada are both being run by coalition governments on both sides of the "aisle" which are implementing austerity cuts accross the board.
Greece is a fairly unique situation. The republic there now has only existed since the 1970s. At that time, the easiest way for the government to gain legitimacy was to placate them with cushy wages and benefits. Unfortunately, the Greeks aren't good at collecting taxes. This worked out OK as long as the country could borrow at reasonable rates. However, since joining the Eurozone, they can no longer print their own money to pay back debts.
Europe as a whole (with the possible exception of certain Nordic countries) has been veering to the right along with America in the last 30 years. They are seeing benefits being cut and calls for austerity in the face of mounting debt in places like Greece. Austerity will not save the Eurozone and it will not save the US economy. When people have no jobs and no money, and the wealthy and corporations are not spending, the only solution to increase government spending. Instead, here, as in Europe, they are cutting spending - except on bailing out banks and bank executives.
Greece is a fairly unique situation. The republic there now has only existed since the 1970s. At that time, the easiest way for the government to gain legitimacy was to placate them with cushy wages and benefits. Unfortunately, the Greeks aren't good at collecting taxes. This worked out OK as long as the country could borrow at reasonable rates. However, since joining the Eurozone, they can no longer print their own money to pay back debts.
Yes, Greece is a bit disorganized, but still, the countries in trouble (Greece and Spain specifically), are at least partially in trouble because of disproportionate and unrealistic union-driven compensations and benefits in the face of declining economy. For a while both of these countries became middle-class paradise, and lots of medical tourism from other places takes place in Spain even now...
But, it's a tricky balance - to avoid exploitation, have good standard of living, protect the working people's interests - all within the limits of the current economy. Same applies to the US.
Yes, Suozzi's example of small increases, the plan was to have a small increase over the next few years. Now, yes taxes were raised quite a bit his first year in office, and the Dem leg raised taxes the year before he took office. In fact Suozzi ran on that large increase he planned on his first year in office and won by a 2-1 margin in doing so back in 2001.
Of course the reason that increase was needed in the first place is because Gullotta and the previous GOP legislature ran the county so far into the ground we were facing deficits of upwards of $300 million. The whole mess from the late 90's was why Pataki set up NIFA in the first place.
Since that increase in 2003 (which was Suozzi's first budget) the line was held on taxes until a 3.9% increase his last year in office.
Fact of the matter is we can't never ever raise taxes, that played a big role in getting us into that massive disaster under Gullotta. Controlled, small increases over time is sometimes needed. Yes, it sucks, no one likes to pay higher taxes, but you can only hold the line for so long until something gives. Over the past 8 years, the county raised taxes once, by 3.9%, and had seven years with no increases, that can't go on forever. Suozzi's budget plans called for small increases over the next few years in the 3-4% range, which would have been about a total increase of about $150 (about $50 per year) over a three year period. Mangano getting rid of that blew a massive hole into the budget. The revenue from that which has been lost has not even been remotely been made up through Mangano cuts, and what he has actually cut is aimed at the most vulnerable.
A sidenote to that is the whole tax issue is the fact that both Venditto and Murray have raised taxes in the TOB and TOH respectively FAR more than Suozzi did and proposed as county exec. Hell back in 2009 when Suozzi was getting ripped for the 3.9% increase in the county taxes (which was the first increase since his first year in office) Venditto jumped up the Town of Oyster Bay taxes by 11% but the same mouthpieces that ripped Suozzi were oh so silent on Venditto even though he raised taxes by much more and has throughout his tenure.
Also as far as the assessment goes, the change in the assessment process had nothing to do with Suozzi. It was a change that was court ordered prior to Suozzi even taking office, which was done because the old assessment system was even more screwed up than the current one ( in some cases you had people in homes being sold for $750,000 paying the same or even less in taxes than those in $300,000 homes). Massapequa btw was one of the areas that benefited from the court ordered change in assessment as it was shown to have been over assessed under the old system which dated back to 1938.
Wow. Someone with a memory that goes back more that 10 years.
People either don’t know the local history or forgot that the Republican Machine would consistently and conveniently appoint a member to a new, higher position and move all the underlings up a notch in just the right time frame so they all could run in the next election as incumbents.
Yes, Suozzi's example of small increases, the plan was to have a small increase over the next few years. Now, yes taxes were raised quite a bit his first year in office, and the Dem leg raised taxes the year before he took office. In fact Suozzi ran on that large increase he planned on his first year in office and won by a 2-1 margin in doing so back in 2001.
Of course the reason that increase was needed in the first place is because Gullotta and the previous GOP legislature ran the county so far into the ground we were facing deficits of upwards of $300 million. The whole mess from the late 90's was why Pataki set up NIFA in the first place.
Since that increase in 2003 (which was Suozzi's first budget) the line was held on taxes until a 3.9% increase his last year in office.
Some key points your missing:
COUNTY RESERVES - Suozzi burned through $220 Million of Nassau County's reserve funds during GOOD TIMES. Essentially depleting the "rainy day" fund from 2004 to 2009.
SELFISH SPLURGING/EMBEZZLEMENT - Suozzi took his eye off the ball during his 2006 run for the governor nomination... He granted the unions overly-generous contracts which we're having to deal with now. He lost the nomination while at the same time sold out Nassau County residents for the next decade to come (til 2015).
INCREASED TAXES - He increased taxes over 30% if you include the home energy tax (which equates to a 5% property tax increase).
LIPSTICK ON A PIG: In 2008 & 2009, despite receiving various one-shot infusions from Federal Stimulus money, Suozzi deferred county worker salaries to years after he left office (to 2010, 2011 and beyond).. Instead of correcting the mess that he and the legislature created during contract negotiations in '05-'06, he kicked the can down the road to 2010, 2011, and we're stuck paying for the theft today.
COULD HAVE CUT TAXES - Revenues from Sales tax receipts, gasoline tax receipts, transfer & mortgage taxes, all increased dramatically during most of the Suozzi admin. There should have been no reason to increase property taxes or excise taxes (home heating tax) or burn through the reserve fund during this time. You can blame Gulotta all you want, the key points above are all on Suozzi... and the mess we are facing today is mostly a result of his admin. Mangano has the bal1s to say "no more" to these unions.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Smash255
Fact of the matter is we can't never ever raise taxes, that played a big role in getting us into that massive disaster under Gullotta. Controlled, small increases over time is sometimes needed. Yes, it sucks, no one likes to pay higher taxes, but you can only hold the line for so long until something gives. Over the past 8 years, the county raised taxes once, by 3.9%, and had seven years with no increases, that can't go on forever. Suozzi's budget plans called for small increases over the next few years in the 3-4% range, which would have been about a total increase of about $150 (about $50 per year) over a three year period. Mangano getting rid of that blew a massive hole into the budget. The revenue from that which has been lost has not even been remotely been made up through Mangano cuts, and what he has actually cut is aimed at the most vulnerable.
The thing is, our taxes ARE going up every year -- sales taxes, gasoline taxes, fees, red light cams, other misc excise taxes are going up... even though property taxes are not increasing as much as they appear, we are paying a lot more to live here. The county's revenues have increased well past inflation over the last decade; but the spending is surpassing these increases by hundreds of millions of dollars. It's clearly a spending problem, Smash. And it's a lot more than $150 over a three year period that taxes would have increased (they compound!). We are the second highest taxed county in the country and you want to add more taxes on top of this. Do you have any kids? If/when you do, you will learn quickly what "drawing a line in the sand" really means and why it is necessary at this point.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Smash255
A sidenote to that is the whole tax issue is the fact that both Venditto and Murray have raised taxes in the TOB and TOH respectively FAR more than Suozzi did and proposed as county exec. Hell back in 2009 when Suozzi was getting ripped for the 3.9% increase in the county taxes (which was the first increase since his first year in office) Venditto jumped up the Town of Oyster Bay taxes by 11% but the same mouthpieces that ripped Suozzi were oh so silent on Venditto even though he raised taxes by much more and has throughout his tenure.
Town vs County government are two different animals, especially in Nassau. Nassau's budget (and our tax liability) is 8 to 10 times the size of the Towns. The County generates revenues that increase with inflation (like those mentioned above) , can pass on costs down to the towns & villages, and has a budget that is WAY more bloated than most municipalities in the country. TOBay is actually quite conservative.
COUNTY RESERVES - Suozzi burned through $220 Million of Nassau County's reserve funds during GOOD TIMES. Essentially depleting the "rainy day" fund from 2004 to 2009.
SELFISH SPLURGING/EMBEZZLEMENT - Suozzi took his eye off the ball during his 2006 run for the governor nomination... He granted the unions overly-generous contracts which we're having to deal with now. He lost the nomination while at the same time sold out Nassau County residents for the next decade to come (til 2015).
INCREASED TAXES - He increased taxes over 30% if you include the home energy tax (which equates to a 5% property tax increase).
LIPSTICK ON A PIG: In 2008 & 2009, despite receiving various one-shot infusions from Federal Stimulus money, Suozzi deferred county worker salaries to years after he left office (to 2010, 2011 and beyond).. Instead of correcting the mess that he and the legislature created during contract negotiations in '05-'06, he kicked the can down the road to 2010, 2011, and we're stuck paying for the theft today.
COULD HAVE CUT TAXES - Revenues from Sales tax receipts, gasoline tax receipts, transfer & mortgage taxes, all increased dramatically during most of the Suozzi admin. There should have been no reason to increase property taxes or excise taxes (home heating tax) or burn through the reserve fund during this time. You can blame Gulotta all you want, the key points above are all on Suozzi... and the mess we are facing today is mostly a result of his admin. Mangano has the bal1s to say "no more" to these unions.
The thing is, our taxes ARE going up every year -- sales taxes, gasoline taxes, fees, red light cams, other misc excise taxes are going up... even though property taxes are not increasing as much as they appear, we are paying a lot more to live here. The county's revenues have increased well past inflation over the last decade; but the spending is surpassing these increases by hundreds of millions of dollars. It's clearly a spending problem, Smash. And it's a lot more than $150 over a three year period that taxes would have increased (they compound!). We are the second highest taxed county in the country and you want to add more taxes on top of this. Do you have any kids? If/when you do, you will learn quickly what "drawing a line in the sand" really means and why it is necessary at this point.
Town vs County government are two different animals, especially in Nassau. Nassau's budget (and our tax liability) is 8 to 10 times the size of the Towns. The County generates revenues that increase with inflation (like those mentioned above) , can pass on costs down to the towns & villages, and has a budget that is WAY more bloated than most municipalities in the country. TOBay is actually quite conservative.
Suozzi was actually able to get quite a bit of concessions from the Unions, some of which were won via Arbitration as a result of Suozzi not giving in. The PBA absolutely HATED Suozzi, campaigned HARD for Peterson back in 2005 in part as a direct result of Suozzi playing hardball with the Unions. He was able to put in place a compensation cap on retiring officers, some of whom were taking home in excess of $500,000 in compensation alone just to retire due to contracts from the Gullotta era. Current GOP legislator Joe Belesi took home over $430,000 in compensation when he retired in 2002 as a result of the Gullotta contracts. This was stopped under Suozzi, and one of the first things Mangano did when he took over was remove that cap resulting in officers taking home upwards of $800,000 in compensation just to retire giving a massive handout to the PBA that Mangano is now trying to get tough with. Peter Schmitt absolutely lambasted Suozzi for taking a hard line against the PBA back in 2005. The contract negotiations of 2005/2006 saw numerous concessions, in some cases Arbitrators got involved as the two sides would not budge.
The 3.9% property tax increase and the home heating energy bill were in part a result of the sales tax revenue falling off due to the downturn in the economy in 2008. Fact is you can't go forever without raising taes, and yes it was pretty much a $150 increase to the average homeowner over three years. Yes the person living in the multi million $$$ home would have paid more than that, but do the average Nassau County taxpayer the 3-4% increase would have been between approx $45-60 per year.
As far as the Town vs County, yes the Town doesn't get things like sales revenue which can help with the budget when times are good, but they also aren't hurt by declining sales tax revenue when times are bad (which is what happened in 2009 and 2010). TOB Property taxes have gone up FAR MORE than the Nassau County property taxes went up under Suozzi, Once you take out the first year of cleaning up Gullotta's $400 million deficit that he left, that difference is through the roof and then beyond.
Wow. Someone with a memory that goes back more that 10 years.
People either don’t know the local history or forgot that the Republican Machine would consistently and conveniently appoint a member to a new, higher position and move all the underlings up a notch in just the right time frame so they all could run in the next election as incumbents.
Exactly. We are following the exact same fiscal path the county took in the 1990's. If it didn't work during economic boom times it sure as hell is not going to work when the economy is not good.
These people are out of their minds. I watched the recap of the Nassau Budget Vote (which passed btw) and the only ones that made sense were republicans. I would say I've been a moderate my whole life and I've never been more convinced to vote republican in my life. What do democrats not understand about cutting spending, no more taxes?? No more gimmicks and theft from the taxpayers?? And yeah, obliterating the county reserve fund is equivalent to raising taxes.
Democrats argued three major points.
1) "we won't have buses anymore" - That is false, we are just changing operators.
2) "2 precincts are closing and will endanger the county"- This is comical fear-mongering..when was the last time you visited a precinct? In fact, closing the precincts is going to save money and keep the same level of cops on the streets. Precincts are becoming obsolete with technological advances.
3) "We have to share sacrifice / other alternatives / traditional way of dealing with the budget "; ie- we want to raise taxes on Nassau County residents."
Shared sacrifice? Unions have not even begun to realize any real sacrifices yet. County pay is over 50% of the budget. The rest is debt servicing, OTPS, state mandates, welfare etc.. almost nothing in there that can be cut.
We have TWO choices: Raise taxes by hundreds of dollars a year, every year going forward, or cut county pay by a small percentage across the board to keep tax increases off the table. This is not even a cut in pay, it's keeping raises off the table until the economy returns to a healthy level.
#3 is the reason I am voting republican across the board. The democrats we have in the legislature are now trying to kowtow to the unions and calling for more taxes, using up and obliterating 50% of our reserve fund (which will crush our bond rating), and a paltry $40M in concessions.
No way, democrats are completely out of touch with the average Nassau County resident. You can suck up to the unions all you want, republicans will still keep control of Nassau. Love him or hate him, Schmitt and the republicans are the only ones looking out for the taxpayers.
The funniest part was one of the Democrat reps couldn't understand how each county worker averaged $70k - $80k in pay...according to her the math didn't work out...she incorrectly claimed they only make $50k... Really?? Guess she hasn't seen the seethroughny.com site yet.
Too funny. Schmitt, if you remember, was solidly behind Gulotta and all was puppy dogs and rainbows. But when Gulotta saw the writing on the wall and decided not to run again because he realized he had no shot at winning since people blamed him for running the county into the ground, Schmitt suddenly had an “epiphany” - not that the people were right, just that Gulotta was of no use to him any more. So Schmitt dropped Gulotta like 3rd period French and even joined in on the pile on. So to suggest that Schmitt is looking out for anyone but himself really is funny.
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"; ie- we want to raise taxes on Nassau County residents."
