Suozz's New Campaign

by Scott Feldman

Tom Suozzi was on a conference call with reporters around the state this week. Nassau's County Executive chairs a state commission on property tax relief. And Thursday he kicked off a campaign to convince state lawmakers to approve a measure that would cap school taxes.

                 The new Senate leader, Dean Skelos from Rockville Centre, is ready to call his members back in a special session to pass a tax cap bill. Governor David Paterson is also on board with the plan. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver tells News 12, "I support a property tax cap, but only if the resources are in place to insure that every child in NYS receives a quality education." The powerful NYS United Teachers union calls the tax cap "a gimmick" that would "damage educational programs and widen the achievement gap." They favor a "circuit breaker" approach which would hold property taxes to a percentage of a New Yorkers household income.

Suozzi tells me the circuit breaker is part of the plan. But you have to start first with the tax cap.  So, what's the financial impact for Long Islanders? If a tax cap were in place in Suffolk, a homeowner would have saved 650 dollars last year. 24 hundred dollars over the past five years. There would have been a bigger savings for Nassau homeowners. 900 bucks last year. 3300 dollars over 5 years.

Senator Skelos has indicated he is ready to bring the tax cap measure to his members for a vote in a special session next month. Suozzi is hopeful Speaker Silver can be convinced to do the same between now and election day. Long Islanders will be watching to see what direction their lawmakers take.