Something I've
never gone into before, for some reason, is our tax rate (maybe
because tax rate, assessments, equalization rates, etc., are not my
strong suit). It's important, though and here's why:
According to 2015 data
from the Treasurer's office, only two New York counties have a lower
tax rate than Otsego County's 2.92 per thousand: Saratoga's 2.90,
and Hamilton County's 2.23. Hamilton County, it must be noted, has a
population of 4,268, which makes it a little bigger than the Town of
Otsego without the tourists.
The other 54
counties (the analysis does not include the five NYC counties,
although that wouldn't change much) have a higher tax rate than
Otsego, from Essex County at 3.03, to Allegheny County at 14.4. Four
counties – Montgomery, Cattaragus, Cortland and Allegheny – are
in double digits. Chenango County, next door, is just below them at
9.97.
This low tax rate
comes at a great cost, of course. We didn't find a magical way to
continue to provide appropriate and meaningful services for less and
less money. We provided less and less service. Our Highway
Department has shrunk by half in the last ten years, as has our IT
Department. Our M&C staff, as you're no doubt tired of hearing,
has had only one raise in nine years. We've outsourced our Tourism
and Economic Development Departments.
Some of this needs
to be fixed.
My tax property tax
bill, in January, contained a charge of $526.96 for County tax and
nearly three times that for City tax. Statewide, that is what's
known as a very low County tax. Given the 2% tax cap (which has
been, in the last few years, substantially lower than 2%), my County
taxes can go up a maximum of $10.54. I am one of the few people in
Otsego County who know how much rebuilding we need, so the fact that
I'm willing to put up with another ten or fifteen dollars a year in
County taxes to address this problem doesn't mean much. But somehow,
we have to find a way to rebuild Otsego County, and convince the
taxpayers of Otsego County to be our partners in that work.
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