Property taxes keep rising... (New York, Patchogue: section 8, mortgages, loans)

[mikeyc4582]

Originally Posted by ClarkStreetKid

Just wondering... why didn't anyone keep taxes in check, or home prices or services? Sorry guys, but getting ticked at what the cops make is just a distraction for all the other things that are kicking Islanders collective butts.

taxes aren't kept in check because of the cost of the SCPD and the schools! As Dman said... the school system has 10 times more employees than the cops but does not cost 10 times as much. Schools are expensive to run and will always be the biggest portion of the tax bill. That doesn't mean they are the biggest portion of the bill that is hyper inflated - the SCPD has a stranglehold on that!

[AlexisT]

You can start teaching with a bachelors degree if it meets the requirements (i.e. you did education as part of your bachelors), but there's a set period for you to get your master's (5 years, IIRC). If your bachelors isn't in education, you do a master's degree for initial teacher preparation. In some LI districts they won't hire without a master's (I am told, I haven't done a survey).

Teaching Fellows and similar programs are unusual because they let you start with no formal teacher education. Nowhere on LI lets you do that. They don't need to; they have a big enough supply of teachers.

[ClarkStreetKid]

Originally Posted by mikeyc4582

taxes aren't kept in check because of the cost of the SCPD and the schools! As Dman said... the school system has 10 times more employees than the cops but does not cost 10 times as much. Schools are expensive to run and will always be the biggest portion of the tax bill. That doesn't mean they are the biggest portion of the bill that is hyper inflated - the SCPD has a stranglehold on that!

Don't blame the SCPD because they cut a smart deal when times were good, taxes aren't kept in check because the citizens don't want to give anything up or demand lower taxes. You folks vote don't you, why not bite the bullet and start electing pols who are fiscally conservative? Of course you'll have to give up a bunch of stuff but that's the choice you'll have to make. FWIW school taxes have always been high and a point of contention on the Island. Why not make a push to restructure the various LI governments so they are more cost efficient? If you want things to change you'll have to become an activist and work for the change, complaining about what a cop makes is a waste of time.

[kiwi80]

Originally Posted by I_Love_LI_but

They mean that when the budget comes up for vote by the public, there are certain sacred things that do not come up in the vote such as salaries and benefits of the people that work for the school district. The things that do come up in the vote affect the children. So if you vote against the school budget you are taking away from the children while the administrators, unions, etc., have it set up so that nothing is ever taken away from them in terms of salaries and benefits. They have "theirs" all wrapped up because the public is not allowed to vote on what they get. Plus, they get what they want FIRST (ex.: not having to contribute even a penny to health benefits like the rest of the working world does, etc.) and the children of the school district get the leftovers.

Yes and thank you for getting it all out.

[dman72]

Originally Posted by kiwi80

Yes and thank you for getting it all out.

Getting out a good chunk of mis-information is more accurate, but that's what the knee-jerkers want.

[mikeyc4582]

Originally Posted by ClarkStreetKid

Don't blame the SCPD because they cut a smart deal when times were good, taxes aren't kept in check because the citizens don't want to give anything up or demand lower taxes. You folks vote don't you, why not bite the bullet and start electing pols who are fiscally conservative? Of course you'll have to give up a bunch of stuff but that's the choice you'll have to make. FWIW school taxes have always been high and a point of contention on the Island. Why not make a push to restructure the various LI governments so they are more cost efficient? If you want things to change you'll have to become an activist and work for the change, complaining about what a cop makes is a waste of time.

I am blaming the SCPD. Yes, they cut a good deal... but they should realize tax dollars pay for that good deal and we don't appreciate funding a lifestyle for civil servants that many of us cannot afford these days. That's what happens when you cut a deal like that... it will lead to bad PR.

Complaining about what the police make is a way of getting change. Just because YOU don't want anyone to complain about what the police make doesn't mean it's a waste of time. The more letters/phone calls/e-mails that are sent to the county executive and legislature... the more posts on local forums that are made... the more editorials run by newspapers... the more likely we are to see a county executive with some strength stand up to the unions.

[hotkarl]

What are the chances of a public take-over? Is there a way that we could peacefully and legally "overthrow" the local government? I'm serious.
I'm sure alot of people would go "missing", or die under "mysterious circumstances" along the way, Ha, but really, isn't there something that we, the people, could do to bring real and effective change to LI government? It's always the same old lip service with these politicians, I'm tired of it.

[ClarkStreetKid]

Let me ask, what does everyone consider a fair property tax rate? If you don't like the property tax what would be a fair VAT or income tax rate?

[dman72]

Originally Posted by mikeyc4582

I am blaming the SCPD. Yes, they cut a good deal... but they should realize tax dollars pay for that good deal and we don't appreciate funding a lifestyle for civil servants that many of us cannot afford these days. That's what happens when you cut a deal like that... it will lead to bad PR.

Complaining about what the police make is a way of getting change. Just because YOU don't want anyone to complain about what the police make doesn't mean it's a waste of time. The more letters/phone calls/e-mails that are sent to the county executive and legislature... the more posts on local forums that are made... the more editorials run by newspapers... the more likely we are to see a county executive with some strength stand up to the unions.

Yes, I don't understand why complaining about what teachers make is fair game, but somehow complaining about what cops make isn't..when they make substantially more. Makes you wonder about what peoples perspectives are. The police budget is 11% of my company's tax bill, and it's the part where the people in question have the most inflated salaries related to their qualifications and number of applicants. The question is, which part of the budget can you cut with the least impact on services? Sorry folks, but the police budget should be first there, because the same question always comes up: can we get the same police service paying guys 70K with great benefits as we are paying them 120K with great benefits? The answer is obvious: yes.

[hotkarl]

I think in a way, paying the police less may actually be a good thing. It just may weed out those looking to jump on the cash cow, because anyone who truly wants to become a cop because they are passionate about the job and making a difference in the community, will still take the job at a lesser rate of pay, because they believe in what they are doing and what it stands for. Just a thought.