Interesting article on tax burden for homeowners in the area....... (New York: home, school)

[urbanplanner]

Ok, let me chime in here for a moment. It is no coincidence that people of means (i.e. Galisano) for one are moving their residents to other states, along with residents who are voting with their feet.

While I totally agree that NYS taxes and property taxes are very high; and localities are saddled with the burden of Medicare, Medicaid and other unfunded mandates costs; responsiblity still needs to be placed on local officials to create a vision for its community, in partnership with local stakeholders and residents.

No doubt that taxes are a factor in selecting a location to invest. However, if taxes were so cost prohibitive, companies like Sensis, Welch Allyn, Tessy Plastices, Syracuse Research Corp. Anaren, GE Inspections, Lockheed, Bank of New York would move in a minute.

Keep in mind the Capital District (which includes Albany), the Hudson Valley, NYC (Long Island), and yes, Ithaca are all growing in population. Yes, there is Cornell and IC, but the spin-off companies are thriving. The reality is, taxes are a factor and need to be challenged, but creative leadership, and vision (for the community) are factors as well.

Regarding Ithaca, keep in mind a California company recently moved its production of skate boards to Tompkins County. Companies want a community that thrives on itself, a self confidence that is infectious. I believe that places like Ithaca do that. Syracuse is a large Ithaca, as it is a small Boston, with a high concetration of academic institutions that can play a major role in the foundation of a community.

[Cleveland Park]

I would certainly agree that New York is over-unionized and that this contributes to a higher cost of doing business than exists in other areas. Too many layers of redundant government also presents a big problem -- should consolidation not happen during the next half-century, New York is going to be at a huge disadvantage.

[jrice]

I agree and disagree with the unions, at this point they are only hurting american business, enabling broom pushers to make $25/hr. I do think though if NYS started to be more tax friendly in the way it deals with current and new businesses you would see more coming here

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by urbanplanner

Ok, let me chime in here for a moment. It is no coincidence that people of means (i.e. Galisano) for one are moving their residents to other states, along with residents who are voting with their feet.

While I totally agree that NYS taxes and property taxes are very high; and localities are saddled with the burden of Medicare, Medicaid and other unfunded mandates costs; responsiblity still needs to be placed on local officials to create a vision for its community, in partnership with local stakeholders and residents.

No doubt that taxes are a factor in selecting a location to invest. However, if taxes were so cost prohibitive, companies like Sensis, Welch Allyn, Tessy Plastices, Syracuse Research Corp. Anaren, GE Inspections, Lockheed, Bank of New York would move in a minute.

Keep in mind the Capital District (which includes Albany), the Hudson Valley, NYC (Long Island), and yes, Ithaca are all growing in population. Yes, there is Cornell and IC, but the spin-off companies are thriving. The reality is, taxes are a factor and need to be challenged, but creative leadership, and vision (for the community) are factors as well.

Regarding Ithaca, keep in mind a California company recently moved its production of skate boards to Tompkins County. Companies want a community that thrives on itself, a self confidence that is infectious. I believe that places like Ithaca do that. Syracuse is a large Ithaca, as it is a small Boston, with a high concetration of academic institutions that can play a major role in the foundation of a community.

Add Jefferson County(Watertown/Fort Drum) and Orange County(Middletown/Newburgh/Goshen, etc.) to that list as well.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by acknight

What frequently gets ignored is simple math. If you have two towns, hypothetically with fairly similar budgets and populations, where one has house values 200% higher than those in the other, you yield very different property tax rates.

Town A: Budget, $100,000 (for easy math). Total assessment roll: $10M
Town B: Budget, $110,000 (close, not exactly the same). Total assessment roll: $30M.

Town B would have a much lower property tax rate than Town A. The total budget costs are spread over the assessed value of the town's property.

While CNY gov't costs are higher than many areas (in part due to the county taking the burden of medicare costs from the state), part of it really comes down to the example above: pool of low values yields a lower assessed value to split the cost amongst, ergo higher actual rates.

The above is quite an oversimplification of the process, but you get the idea.

Very true and I forgot to mention that the tax burden varies by town and many people forget about that.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by jrice

The school funding is the thing, the majority of the school taxes are generated from casino taxation.

Similar to how the NY State Lottery is supposed to fund education here.

[acknight]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

Similar to how the NY State Lottery is supposed to fund education here.

Except, of course, that it actually does, there. Here, it goes into the general fund these days :/

[jrice]

I would like to see the state legalize gambling, put a casino in Destiny USA (that way the hotel (if built) will actually be occupied), let gas stations install poker/slot machines in gas stations and bars, and let the taxation from that fund county schools, reduce taxes across the board because of this new found income source, and hopefully that in itself will bring in some new business

[SteveMax58]

Originally Posted by jrice

I would like to see the state legalize gambling, put a casino in Destiny USA (that way the hotel (if built) will actually be occupied), let gas stations install poker/slot machines in gas stations and bars, and let the taxation from that fund county schools, reduce taxes across the board because of this new found income source, and hopefully that in itself will bring in some new business

If nothing else...the reduced tax burdens would leave more money in consumer pockets which would allow them to consume more goods/services if desired, which will cause more demand which will increase employee counts and/or openings of new businesses...etc, etc.

I know gambling and casinos in general are one of those NIMBY things with a lot of people. Maybe it's perception or maybe it has some basis in reality but so long as there is a place most can agree on to put it, I really don't see it being harmful. Like anything...zoning and planning are the keys.

[Cleveland Park]

This gambling fad -- as the situations in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Ohio are playing out -- is showing itself to be a zero-sum game. Sure, everyone loves a trip to Las Vegas every so often, but gaming elsewhere isn't that special, and revenues across the country are backing that assertion.

There are only so many gaming dollars to be spent; Sands in Bethlehem (PA) opens up and siphons off a chunk of Atlantic City's revenue. Next year the first casino will open in Philadelphia will open and Bethlehem will take a hit.

Expansion of slots seemed like a great idea when Las Vegas was raking in the money, but it was a short-sighted move by northeastern politicians. A lot of developers (and law firms) got wealthy in a hurry, but the states aren't better off now than they were a decade ago. Las Vegas is its own animal; other gaming locales will remain second-rate and be stuck fighting each other for smaller chunks of the same-sized pie.