Cuomo’s hardline through Schenectady lens January 29, 2013 at 11:32 am by Lauren Stanforth, Staff writer
Gov. Andrew Cuomo visited the Times Union’s editorial board Monday, and provided a hardline for those cities that are looking for aid relief to plug multi-million dollar budget holes. He said the answer is restructuring, possibly under a control board – with a control board having the authority to freeze municipal union contracts.
Schenectady Mayor Gary McCarthy didn’t testify during a government hearing on municipal aid Tuesday, as Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings and Rochester and Syracuse’s mayors did. But he certainly has been banging the increased aid drum since being elected in 2011. In Schenectady’s case, it’s more equity that’s the complaint rather than requiring more aid (as Utica gets a larger percentage of aid than Schenectady does).
But Schenectady has the same problems as Syracuse and Rochester – the city must provide municipal services to a city that has infrastructure built for 100,000 people – but now has a tax base of 60,000. And in Schenectady, only about 78 percent of property owners pay their taxes.
However, most of the city’s tax dollars go toward paying for public safety – $26 million for 2013, when only $31.4 million is expected to be collected in taxes. Cuomo’s hint at reigning in unions would help in Schenectady’s case, as its police union got 4 percent raises in 2011 and 2012 and will get a 3 percent salary increase this year.
DUH! It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that when THE DEM PARTY chooses to exempt taxes on some of the richest properties - FOR PROFITS (OF WHICH PROCTORS IS THE ABSOLUTE RICHEST), then the percent of taxpaying properties is going to drop. And so the DEMS have put more tax burden on the homeowners who then can't afford to pay their taxes and wind up in tax foreclosure. IS THAT NOT WHAT I HAVE BEEN SAYING FOR A COUPLE YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
YES, BRING ON THE CONTROL BOARD, the sooner the better!!!!!!
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
Now he's talking about "freezing" union contracts instead of possibly voiding them? I didn't really like the idea of voiding contracts, except here in Schenectady they allowed the employees way to much control, but this looks like a step back. Notice how McCarthy tries to hide the tax situation under population loss and non-compliance? Like it is something that just happened to the city, instead of something they worked hard to create. That BS about "having to provide services and the infrastructure and all that is just hot air. Schenectady is a relatively compact city and we don't have far flung ghost neighborhoods like Detroit. Besides, he forgets to mention that taxes were stupidly raised almost 25% and a garbage fee on top of that because someone stupid said that we needed a good Moody's rating and they all blindly went along. So we aren't "cash-strapped". I really hate how these numbskulls come up with some bogus "talking point" and the newspapers just print it, unchallenged. I was in favor of control boards, but if it is going to be politicized it could be disastrous. Cuomo isn't all that smart, and as far as being reform minded, that's hilarious. We are doomed.
Life is tough, but it's tougher when you're stupid - John Wayne
TIP TO NEW VISITORS TO THIS FORUM - To improve your blogging pleasure it is recommended to ignore (Through editing your prefere) the posts of the following bloggers - DemocraticVoiceofReason, Scotsgod08 and Smoking Bananas. They continually go off topic, do not provide facts and make irrational remarks. If you do not believe me, this can be proven by their reputation scores or by a sampling of their posts.
He probably didn't testify because he would be unable answer questions, "well, why did you and your colleages exempt rich downtown owners from paying taxes?" "Why did your assessor grant STAR exemptions on multiple houses two homeowners?" Etc.
It would be too embarrassing for him to realize he and his dem buddies caused this mess
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
"However, most of the city’s tax dollars go toward paying for public safety – $26 million for 2013, when only $31.4 million is expected to be collected in taxes. Cuomo’s hint at reigning in unions would help in Schenectady’s case, as its police union got 4 percent raises in 2011 and 2012 and will get a 3 percent salary increase this year."
REALLY...REALLY...
We're spending over 90% of the taxpayer money on public safety?????
Come on Visitor, that CAN'T be right!!! And we're doling out raises?????
The Control Board can't come in soon enough as this is blatant corruption at it's finest.
"However, most of the city’s tax dollars go toward paying for public safety – $26 million for 2013, when only $31.4 million is expected to be collected in taxes. Cuomo’s hint at reigning in unions would help in Schenectady’s case, as its police union got 4 percent raises in 2011 and 2012 and will get a 3 percent salary increase this year."
REALLY...REALLY...
We're spending over 90% of the taxpayer money on public safety?????
Come on Visitor, that CAN'T be right!!! And we're doling out raises?????
The Control Board can't come in soon enough as this is blatant corruption at it's finest.
just wait until national healthcare mandates hit everyone's wallets on top of it....it cost A LOT of money to support your neighbor..hurry sign up for that over time...we need to get the hell out of here or get them the hell out...
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
You don't need Control Board to address these problems. This could have been addressed, at least in part, by changing the way public safety contracts are negotiated. A permanent arbitration board, beholden to no one, and they would not need to keep either side appeased.
And, I doubt there will be a control board in Schenectady. And, I don't think that is necessarily the right way to go. Politicians agreed to contracts - they should have to honor them. If you simply get rid of the contracts - there is no consequence for people who should have foreseen this problem.
Bottom line - the City is a fairly large business. If you want it run like one, then you need to structure it that way. How many of the present people holding positions of power in the City would be hired to run a company this size? Probably should revert to the Alderman form of Council, where they advocate for their respective neighborhoods and let someone with a resume and record manage the City.
Any honest arbitrator will tell you that because of two things: public employees cannot strike and the arbitrator's desire to not get blacklisted - their finger is "on the scale" in favor of union employees
With binding arbitration - "agreed" takes on new meaning.
Remind me again what deductions are taken out of the city employees paychecks for health and dental? What percent? Can you name one company that offers the same.
Life is tough, but it's tougher when you're stupid - John Wayne
TIP TO NEW VISITORS TO THIS FORUM - To improve your blogging pleasure it is recommended to ignore (Through editing your prefere) the posts of the following bloggers - DemocraticVoiceofReason, Scotsgod08 and Smoking Bananas. They continually go off topic, do not provide facts and make irrational remarks. If you do not believe me, this can be proven by their reputation scores or by a sampling of their posts.
You don't need Control Board to address these problems. This could have been addressed, at least in part, by changing the way public safety contracts are negotiated. A permanent arbitration board, beholden to no one, and they would not need to keep either side appeased.
And, I doubt there will be a control board in Schenectady. And, I don't think that is necessarily the right way to go. Politicians agreed to contracts - they should have to honor them. If you simply get rid of the contracts - there is no consequence for people who should have foreseen this problem.
Bottom line - the City is a fairly large business. If you want it run like one, then you need to structure it that way. How many of the present people holding positions of power in the City would be hired to run a company this size? Probably should revert to the Alderman form of Council, where they advocate for their respective neighborhoods and let someone with a resume and record manage the City.
Talk about a Control Board is a distraction.
We ABSOLUTELY need a control board to address this problem and why? Because no one else in the City of Schenectady has a backbone to do so.
Too many handshakes. Too many backroom deals. Too many promises. Too many political favors to count. No one will be willing to stop these contracts or negotiate in the best interest of the taxpayers of a dying City. The overtime is double base salary...and no one is blinking an eye.
A control board isn't the distraction...the current inactivity even when presented with the facts...that's the problem and the reason for an outside entitiy to come in.
Raises/salaries for politicians, police, fire, and other public employees should be voted on by the people that will have to pay the bill for them, the taxpayer, not some politician.
Logged
There are beat cops downtown "protecting' those who dont live in the city and DONT pay taxes in the city.
