To: Steve Vegilante, Town of Fallsburg Supervisor, Anthony P Cellini, Town of Thompson Supervisor, The New York State House, The New York State Senate, and Governor Andrew Cuomo
FAIR SHARE - Property Tax Equity
Many large properties in Sullivan County currently are being taken off the property tax roles to encourage new development, which means the current homeowners will have to pay for the developer share for the next 21 years. Property owners are already overburdened paying 8-10% of assessed value, we need property tax equity for Sullivan County to thrive economically.
Why is this important?
New York property tax is out of control - the highest in the nation & Sullivan County if one of the worst. Too many people are losing their homes due to tax foreclosures because of excessive property tax. These are homes, that have been lived in for years or even a life time, these are seniors and families trying to make ends meet, but their homes are going back to the county because they are unable to pay their property tax. The state is giving property tax exemptions to many wealthy developers in Sullivan County, along with all the religious non-profits. The tax burden (which pays for the infra-structure, townships and schools) is pushed on to the average homeowner. The excessive property tax is stopping people interested in buying here and makes it almost impossible to sell. No one is willing to buy into this situation, and this is why Sullivan County is one of the poorest in to county and has been for decades. This is shameful and clearly taxation without representation. For Sullivan County to thrive economically, we need careful planning, balanced budgets and fair-share development.