Says It’s Time for A Property Tax Revolution
Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi has announced his bid to run for re-election to the post he has held since 2001. Suozzi will be running this November to continue as the Nassau County Executive in a time when residents are hurting financially from a national recession.
With residents of Nassau County particularly finding it difficult to continue their way of life in the communities they call home because of the property tax burden, Suozzi says it’s time for a property tax revolution.
“This year’s campaign is going to be about a property tax revolution. We need to make more of our governments efficient. We need to consolidate government because there are just too many governments here in Nassau County, Long Island and throughout New York State. We need to make sure we expand our tax base by approving projects like the Lighthouse Project. We need Albany to give us more of our fair share of state aid and to get rid of some of these state mandates that cost us too much money,” said Suozzi in a video on his campaign website.
As part of his 2009 budget for the county, Suozzi raised property taxes for the county portion of property owners’ tax bill by 3.9 percent. When the county found itself with a projected deficit of $150 million in February because of declining sales tax revenue, a result of a staggering national economy, Suozzi proposed a plan to close the projected deficit that included a 7 percent pay cut for all county workers.
Suozzi served as the chairman of the New York State Commission on Property Tax Relief, which had recommended a 4 percent cap on the increases for school tax levies. The state legislature has yet to make such a cap mandatory.
Suozzi opponent is expected to be Nassau County Legislator Edward Mangano, who represents 17th District.
— Joe Rizza
