Chemung County Calls for Mandate Relief in this Legislative Session

May 19, 2017

Chemung County Executive Tom Santulli and Chemung County Legislator Rodney J. Strange continue to fight for mandate relief in Chemung County and across New York State by declaring the month of May, Mayday for Mandate Relief in Chemung County. The “Mayday for Mandate Relief” campaign calls on New York State to provide much-needed mandate relief for counties and local governments.

 

Santulli and Strange want to keep the pressure on the Legislature in Albany until the end of the session.  Santulli stated, “The Mayday events held across the State have been very successful in raising awareness among taxpayers of the need for mandate relief.  We need to keep the pressure on our lawmakers until reform is actually realized.”  Strange added, “Unfunded State mandates are the biggest fiscal crisis facing Chemung County.”

 

In Chemung County, the nine unfunded mandates which statewide consume 90 percent of all property taxes collected actually account for 130 percent of Chemung County’s property tax levy, or $29,146,582, plus 22 percent of county sales tax receipts, which amount to $8,946,028. The nine state mandates include; Medicaid, Public Assistance and Safety Net, Child Welfare, Special Education Pre-K, Indigent Defense, Probation, Early Intervention, Youth Detention, and Pensions.

 

Chemung County is being joined by other counties from across the state and the New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC), which are advocating for three specific mandate relief measures in the final four weeks of the State Legislative Session.

 

  1. Reimburse counties for the state-imposed increase to district attorney’s salaries,
  2. Phase in a state takeover of indigent legal defense service (ILDS) costs, and delay a major expansion of ILDS eligibility from 125 percent to 250 percent of the federal poverty rate, and
  3. Realign how 9-1-1 surcharge funds are collected for counties to maintain and
    improve their emergency communication services to better combat global terrorism and improve public safety.

 

During the month of May, county leaders and taxpayers will continue to hold the spotlight on the state mandated programs that continue to consume property tax dollars and curtail critical local services that contribute to Chemung County’s excellent quality of life.