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Macejka was the fall guy, he took the sword as a good soldier.  Prepare for him to get reappointed, (pay back)!

I suppose in that position one gets a regular whipping.....after all a person should know how the people will react when dealing/touching/changing etc their 'piles' of money.......

what I dont get is why we have been sitting on our asses for so long about keeping up the re-vals year after year after year after year......

A.If you own a business in town it looks good to donate
B.If you also own a home in town it looks good to donate
C.It doesn't matter where that money comes from--lower taxes on the business or lower taxes on your home
D.people only 'donate' money when it comes from another source(capitalism) and not their own pocket(as if it is privilege/prestige?)

I really dont care just make it equal rates community business owner or not......the state has laws-----and loopholes for those willing to take the time to gather more money for themselves or those willing to pay someone else to gather more money for themselves(legal or ethical doesn't really matter, just look at NYS-- all gumbas)

The assessor will tell you that he didn't do anything wrong after all he who does nothing makes no mistakes.

I don't mind that the businesses are rated differently than residents. In my opinion, the residents should encourage tax breaks and incentives for businesses, since they contribute to the tax base and landscape of a community. If anyone thinks that small businesses get a free ride in NYS, just go to any small business here in Rotterdam and just see what their operating costs are. Just their state mandated programs/taxes/insurance, alone are huge.

Again, in my opinion, if we can give them a slightly lower tax break and be a business friendly community, it will be a win/win situation for all of us.

Quoted from AVON

Fellow Neighbors:

Regarding the reval., stop and evaluate the process.  The total pool of all the assessed values of properties in the school district are added together.  Then the school district divides the balance of their budget not covered by State Funding into this pool to establish the rate per thousand of assessed value.  This rate is what our taxes are based on.  The residential assessed values went way up, probably no disagreement right?  So if that much residential value went up, and the rate per thousand didn't come down in proportion to the assessed value increase, what happened?  Well the commercial property assessments had to go down.  If they remained at least even, we would still have seen a "rate per thousand decrease".  The inflated assessment pool the school district uses should have dropped the rate, so the impact to the taxpayer would have been minimal.  Higher assessment, but lower rate, net change, neligible.  DIDN"T HAPPEN!  "Rotterdam, NY is business friendly" takes on an entirely new dimension.  The Residential supports the tax load for the Commercial!  If you're looking for the Town to investigate this, keep in mind that the tax role was accepted over six months ago and absolutely nothing has been done.  The Town leaders won't pursue it because they helped design it.  Macejka was the fall guy, he took the sword as a good soldier.  Prepare for him to get reappointed, (pay back)!

AVON-  I do not think he will be reappointed.  The Board is primarily Republican and he's a democrat. He may have fallen on the sword as a good soldier but I don't thnk he's gonna have 3 councilmembers looking to save him.  He should be looking for a state job- probably already has one lined up by now.  

The sooner he finds a job elsewhere the better, he doesn't do anything for this town to help the residents anyway so adios.

Quoted from Shadow

The sooner he finds a job elsewhere the better, he doesn't do anything for this town to help the residents anyway so adios.

I couldn't agree more!!!

http://www.dailygazette.com

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SCHENECTADY COUNTY
County poised to hike taxes
Rates to increase in every town except Rotterdam
BY MICHAEL LAMENDOLA Gazette Reporter

    County taxes would increase for residents of Schenectady and every town in the county except for Rotterdam based on tentative tax rates the Schenectady County Legislature is scheduled to adopt tonight.
    The proposed rates reflect a municipality’s share of the county’s adopted $61 million levy based on its total taxable assessed value and balanced by equalization rates provided by the state.
    The proposed tax rates for 2008 are:
    City: $10.07 per $1,000 assessed value. The tax rate was $9.11 per $1,000 in 2007 and $9.63 in 2006. The city’s share of the county’s tax levy in 2008 is $14.4 million.
    Duanesburg: $22.42 per $1,000. The rates for 2007 and 2006 were: $20.48 and $19.35. Its share of the county tax levy is $3.4 million.
    Glenville: $7.03 per $1,000. The rates for 2007 and 2006 were: $6.48 and $10.21. Its share of the county tax levy is $13.7 million.
Niskayuna: $11.35 per $1,000. Rates for 2007 and 2006: $10.70 and $10.59. Tax levy share: $14.5 million.
Princetown: $20.42 per $1,000. Rates for 2007 and 2006: $17.02 and $16.88. Tax levy share: $1.2 million.
Rotterdam: $5.63 per $1,000; tax levy share: $13.4 million.
    Rotterdam’s share of the county tax levy declined to 22.1 percent of the total under the 2008 budget from 29 percent in the 2007 budget, said Bob Zych, CPA, director of treasury systems for Schenectady County. “It’s all driven by equalization rates,” he said.
    The town’s 2007 county tax rate was $222.59 per $1,000 in 2007, based on a equalization rate of 2.95 percent. The norm is 100 percent.
    By going to full value this year, or to 100 percent of a property’s value, the town benefited by seeing its share of the county tax levy decline by more than $1.3 million, Zych said.
    Municipalities whose properties drop more in value compared to the prior year’s will see an increase in their share of the tax levy, he said.
    County Legislator Joe Suhrada, RRotterdam, called the tax decrease “one silver lining in that whole picture. It’s been a rough year for Rotterdam taxpayers because of that reassessment.”
    County Legislature Gary Hughes, D-Schenectady, said, “Clearly, we would have liked the total levy to be less. When you look at the fiscal pressures at the state level and at the statewide decline in sales tax, we did a good job of bringing an unacceptable 10 percent increase in the tax levy to a somewhat more acceptable 5 percent increase.”
    County Manager Kathleen Rooney’s tentative budget carried a tax levy increase approaching 10 percent. Majority Democrats trimmed the final tax levy by eliminating nearly $6 million from the budget. Minority Republicans offered amendments to reduce it to below zero percent.
    Hughes said Democrats are “already looking at ways to reduce expenses in 2008.”
    Minority Leader Robert Farley, RGlenville, called county property tax increases an “offense to taxpayers, especially when we turn around as a county and ask taxpayers to pay the eighth highest burden in nation.”

Schenectady County tax payers will be paying an even higher percentage in taxes compared to the rest of the nation as soon as the new tax increase goes into effect.

Did you read the words carefully?  It said the RATE will go down. DUH. Prior to the reassessment, our tax RATES for various taxes were in the "hundreds per thousand".  Of course the RATE is going to go DOWN.  If you were assessed for 4,000 previously and paid, say, "300 per thousand" then the tax BILL was 1,200.  If the house is now assessed for, say, $100,000, of course we are NOT going to have the same RATE because no one would be doing $300 x 100 (i.e., per thousand, there are 100 thousands) because the tax bill would not be $30,000 per year.  

But while the RATE goes down, what will happen to the BILL?

I was scrolling through these posts of recent days and read one where someone wrote about the commercial property assessments not bein affected as bad as residential.  I too wondered about residential tax bills going up so much.  At most I figured the tax bills of the oldest homes would go up more than that of the newer homes as the town had newer homes more in line, even with the equalization rate, with their value.  But I have a friend who lives in the western part and he said how much his bill went up, his house was only 5 yrs old.  

The person that posted said "Rotterdam is business friendly"

This got me thinking in a larger picture.  We constantly here how businesses are moving out of NY state because the taxes are too high.  But then we complain that the businesses aren't paying enough in taxes.  So do we want businesses to pay more in taxes to make them leave more so residential pays more burden?

I really not trying to take sides, but I guess I'm playing devils advocate on both sides,  When I think of the town, (never mind that many businesses can afford it easily), if business' taxes go up, they will leave town.  If their taxes are lower, then residential goes up.  So what is the answer?  Cuts in the budget?  Where?  Cut snow plowing?  (hey, they do indeed to a great job).  Cut out lighting?  Cut out road repair?  Cut one employee in one of the adminsitrative offices and you know darn well we will all be griping about not being able to get someone on the phone.  The employee might be talking to me on the phone, sure as heck you would be whining saying "I can't ever get hold of anyone, what do they do all day, read magazines?"  And if the employee is on the phone with you, I'd probably feel the same say.  

I have often thought about this question on the city of Schenectady level as my parents live there.  And it seems no matter what department they make cuts, people would say not to, but rather cut somewhere else.  I know people say cut the cell phones and mayors jeep, but that's just a drop in the bucket.  

Look at the state level.  We whine that state employees are paid so much.  Heck, a typical employee probably gets about $35,000 maybe $40,000 unless you are a patronage person or management or legislator.  The employees can't strike, often times their insurance increases exceed their pay increase, just like social security elderly have happen too.  But look at the judges, they are greedy for an increase, they make so very much, but they are suing to get an increase in pay.  Can the typical employees do that? Of course not.  But, by the same token, the goverment workers get far less than private industry.  Find me a private practice lawyer that makes as little as a judge.  (unless it's a new employee fresh out of school).  

But then we can look at the federal level.  My goodness, sure, many people will talk about the wasteful spending on the war, but we should also look at the waste such as spending on studying mating habits of a frog or something.  Of course many look at the state level too, but us here in Rotterdam, wouldn't we be happy to hear that Tedisco, Amedore, or Farley got "us" some money for the little league, or some health center or something?  But when we hear that some legislator in Buffalo got $10,000 for a health center out there, we call it pork,

Not trying to take sides, just something to ponder.  Have a good day

Rotterdam's portion of taxes went down but the overall county is going to go up, Schdy County will be going higher on the nations overall tax rate percentage. We complain that the state has too many public employees both local and state that suck the life out of the fewer private sector employees that pay for their salaries. As far as the state and federal legislatures go I think we should vote them all out of office and elect all new representatives.

County Legislature Gary Hughes, D-Schenectady, said, “Clearly, we would have liked the total levy to be less. When you look at the fiscal pressures at the state level and at the statewide decline in sales tax, we did a good job of bringing an unacceptable 10 percent increase in the tax levy to a somewhat more acceptable 5 percent increase.”

That's just plain scary.  An increase was not remotely acceptable to me.  To mikechristine's point above, and of course he's right, you can't have it both ways.  My personal view is that it's time to cut...and yes, feel the pain in a different way.  Cut what?  Easy...since it's so hard to differentiate what's more important than something else, I'm prepared to accept for simplicity sake that the current allocations are correct.  Slash whatever percent you can stomach across the board...no exceptions.  Every program and service feels the pain equally.  Do it on every level of government and we're finally talking.  I think it becomes easier to begin identifying waste that way.  It'll be ugly initially, but ultimately get you back on the right track.  Or...accept Mr. Hughes approach...in which case, stop complaining.

mikechristine1,  Your analysis is excellent.  These are all questions I ponder on almost a daily basis.

Listen, there is more than enough blame to go around and justifiably so. But where do we even begin? We are talking about a HUGE government spending machine. From the top all the way to the bottom. I know that it all starts at the voting machine, but I don't see that working very well anymore. It appears that the more government programs there are, the more the people like it. Sick if you ask me. The government now controls our children, our health care and our pocketbooks, just to mention a few. There are more laws and restrictions to sink a ship! WE ARE BEING TAXED TO DEATH! And the government is taking us over by one government (handout) program at a time!

You're right Bumble it's seems like the government is too big to change. The way the government is set up right now we're all set to become a socialistic form of government which is where we're heading.