Wednesday, October 22, 2008

NY STATE IS PAYING PEOPLE TO LIVE HERE EVEN IF THEY DON'T PAY SCHOOL TAXES

PRESS CONFERENCE SCHEDULED FOR THURSDAY AT 2 PM –GREENBURGH TOWN HALL TO OBJECT TO STATE POLICY OF ISSUING REBATE CHECKS TO PEOPLE WHO ARE PAYING NO SCHOOL PROPERTY TAXES
WHY PAY PEOPLE MONEY TO LIVE IN A COMMUNITY IF THEY ARE NOT PAYING SCHOOL TAXES?

Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner, Yorktown Councilman Nicholas Bianco, Councilman Kevin Morgan, Sonja Brown, Diana Juettner, Francis Sheehan & County Legislator Thomas Abinanti will hold an important press conference on Thursday at 2 PM at Greenburgh Town Hall to object to the fact that some NYS property owners who are not paying school taxes due to the STAR program are receiving rebate checks from NY state as part of NY State’s school tax relief (STAR program).

Instead of giving people who pay no school taxes at all, the state could use the funds more efficiently by increasing the STAR rebates for people who pay taxes. In Yorktown the state has issued $873,600 to residents who pay no taxes. In Greenburgh the amount is _$1,692,800.
The State Legislature implemented this program to help keep New Yorkers in New York, basically due to the high cost of property taxes. Was it their intent to hand out money to people who are not paying any school taxes or was the intent of the legislation to help people who can’t afford paying the school taxes.

Feiner, Bianco, Morgan, Brown, Juettner, Sheehan and Abinanti believe that prior to issuing rebate checks the state should check to see if residents qualify for exemptions.

GREENBURGH TOWN HALL
177 HILLSIDE AVE, GREENBURGH

40 comments:

Anonymous said...

Who are these people that do not pay school taxes?
Will this meeting be televised?

Anonymous said...

There are thousands of people in Westchester who are receiving STAR rebate checks when they don't pay taxes. The reason: the STAR program offsets the property taxes. The STAR Rebate program is a different program--people get a check.

Anonymous said...

So now you want to check if persons qualify for exemtions.
Where were you when all the freebbs were given to Fairview community center ,Lois Bronz center the housing authority .
You did not see if these people qualified because if you did we would not be in this state of affairs.
You did no checking and people took advantage big time.
Now you are going after the state who is doing the exact thing .
The people have been on the graey train too long and you cannot make a difference anymore.
I want my star deduction as many others do.
We all worked very hard to get what we have and it's about time we get something in return.
The money that is received is state taxes that all of us working pay at the end of the year.
It's coming to us and we want it.
Tell me what else can a working person receive back for all the money that is paid out.
We received money from the federal government which was a welcome sight now we will get it again. What we fail to understand the working class that pays income taxes are the ones that contribute to this payback.
The people who do not work receive more than a working person.
They should be investigated to see if they should be receiving state aid not he working class.

The first comment wanted to know who are the people that do not pay school tax. Paul will you answer the question.

Anonymous said...

This press release and press conference is a measure of just how desperate Feiner and the rest of the town board is to change the subject of the town's upcoming double digit tax increase.

The people in Greenburgh qualifying for STAR rebates are elderly low income war veterans. That's who Feiner wants the state to punish! These are the people who not only need the rebates to pay for food and heat, but they also need it to pay for Feiner's 21% tax hike for unincorporated Greenburgh (not to mention the tax hike for next year too).

It's not surprising that Feiner would join forces here with Nicholas Bianco from Yorktown. He's a Conservative Party member who runs with Republican backing.

Who else would be so anxious to cut benefits for elderly low income war veterans?

Anonymous said...

Blogger at 12:21 is absolutely right. The only people in Greenburgh who would have enough exemptions to not pay school taxes in Greenburgh, and still qualify for a STAR rebate are elderly low income war veterans. That's who Feiner wants the state to punish. I hope our state officials like Andrea Stewart-Cousins blasts Feiner and the Greenburgh Town Board for targeting those of our residents who served our country in combat and yet today are least able to protect themselves.

Anonymous said...

Wait a minute there are other elderly living here in Greenburgh who are not veterans.
I guess he is attacking all senior citizrns.
If so I do hpe it includes the seniors of Fairview also.

Anonymous said...

In order to get enough exemptions to avoid paying school taxes, it's not enough for you to be over 65 and have a low income; you also have to be a combat war veteran.

If Feiner has time to issue a press release and hold a press conference tomorrow to attack elderly low income combat war veterans, he's got time to work on the town budget. I saw yesterday's work session and it was clear the town doesn't even have a draft budget yet, with Feiner and Kolesar each blaming the other for this failure.

Feiner would be doing everyone a favor if he canceled the press conference on Thursday and worked with the other town department heads to produce a budget. Then, once he knows what the tax increase will be, he can see what could be cut.

True to form, Feiner won't make any real cuts; instead, he'll use reckless gimmicks like drawing down the fund balance and bonding tax certs, which will cost the town millions.

No wonder Feiner wants to parade before the cameras in the hope that the media that reports on Greenburgh will forget that Feiner's about to screw unincorporated Greenburgh big time next week.

Anonymous said...

unincorporated greenburgh has screwed itself by repeatedly voting for the current set of clowns decade after decade as well as for stupid things like the library.

it has also failed to make smart alliances with some of the villages - instead it clings to it own versions of guns and religion that have only served to alienate villagers.

Anonymous said...

Screw unincorporated part of town big time next week,it seems he has been doing this right along for years.
But this time is different, He is starting his campaining for the seat again well we will see that he too gets screwed.

Anonymous said...

who you gonna screw him with?

sheehanigans was so desperate to be on the town board he asked feiner if he could run on feiner's ticket.

who you got?
who you gonna call?

best bet - leave town - thats how you get rid of feiner and dolts like juettner, sheehan, morgan and brown.

btw - if greenburgh was a stock the exchange would have halted trading.

Anonymous said...

The issue is simple: Should STAR payments be given to people who pay no taxes or to people who pay school taxes and can't afford the taxes?

Anonymous said...

Anon at 3:40, who is Feiner in disguise, doesn't seem to get it. According to the state officials in Albany who are in charge of the STAR program, the issue is not whether STAR payments should be given to people who pay no taxes, but whether STAR payments should be given to those who, because of the property tax exemptions they receive, pay no SCHOOL taxes.

Now, who out there qualifies for enough property tax exemptions that they don't don't pay these school taxes?

The only people in the state who fall into that category are people over 65 who have very low incomes who live in homes or coops that have a relatively low market value. (The blogger who said you also had to be a combat vet is in error; combat veterans get property tax exemptions for taxes other than school taxes).

So, the issue is simple: is it fair for the state to give STAR rebate checks to low income elderly people living in relatively inexpensive houses in Greenburgh who presumably need the money for food and heat this winter (and paying for Greenburgh's exhorbitant tax hikes too), or should the state be miserly and make this population even worse off then it already is?

For Feiner and the rest of the town board, the answer is that they think the state should be miserly and make the elderly poor in Greenburgh suffer even more than they are already suffering.

Feiner also seems to suggest that the choice is whether to give out these rebates to the elderly poor who pay no school taxes, or whether the money should instead be given to those who pay school taxes, but "can't afford the taxes."

This last response is a typical Feiner non-sequitur. If you qualify for STAR, or enhanced STAR, you get a break on your school property taxes. If you don't qualify for STAR or enhanced STAR, the state assumes you can afford your school taxes.

If you live in Greenburgh, where property values have increased dramatically relative to other parts of the state, you may be burdened by your school taxes, but because the town, under Feiner, has refused to engage in reassessment, the STAR benefits are diminished. Feiner likes to mislead people in Greenburgh by saying that STAR benefits are being phased out. That's not true. It's just that in Greenburgh, residents here don't qualify for as much as they used to -- thanks to Feiner.

Anonymous said...

I......AM.....SPEACHLESS!!

Feiner. You are an ass.

Anonymous said...

I'll bet he thinks there are not enough elderly left here to vote him in again (dead, moved, can't afford to live here) so he figures he'll start screwing them too!

Man! This just gets worse and worse every day! The guy needs meds! STAT!

Anonymous said...

I wish Mr. Feiner would spend more effort on internal matters than pointing fingers at others.

Anonymous said...

INVOICE FOR GAY SILVERMAN

Whereas you have entered into an agreement to rent space at the Theodore D. Young Community Center, and as a good responsible taxpayer, conscientious of the financial burden placed on our valued town residents, this letter serves to remind you that you owe $20,000.00 in rental fees which was duly noted from last January. Simply put, we taxpayers don’t know where you get the chutzpa from, to go to a town board meeting and play victim while shamelessly pandering to temporary commissioner, Valerie Whitehead. Add to the fact that you put down the efforts of the entire staff, who work hard every day to put out the best programs possible plus contrary to your comment, do indeed welcome everyone who enters through the center’s doors.

Now let’s figure this out:

A Valerie desperately needs money.
+ B You haven’t paid your bill.
= C: More shady wrongdoings!

Can you smell kickback?

It’s highly suspect when the department head praises the efforts of a space renter who is ten months behind in her rental fees. The temp lady should have initiated some efforts to collect money that was due to the town!

Paul, please investigate this.

PS. Gay, I’m sending you some kneepads. They should be useful at your next town board meeting.

Anonymous said...

The assessor should be fired for making such a big mistake.
What other mistakes has she made with our tax bills.
This mistake should n ot havehappened if she was paying attention to the news.
But we know she has her mind else where.
At this stage of the game errors like this should not happen by the way she didn't have the guts to explain to the public how this error was made.
The receiver of taxes had to explain.
Samis asked her to explain but she refused.
Get rid of her she does not look at the welfare of the people.
Yes we will be compensated one way or another but we still have to pay money toward the taxes.
Paul your way of running a government has gone the way of the dog park.
Tell me what qualifications does this assessor have.

Anonymous said...

A mistake of this magnitude should not be tollerated by the person in charge,the board and above all the public.
GET RID OF HER.

Anonymous said...

Please make cuts in the police dept.
find out how many cops work inside.
put them on the road

Anonymous said...

Attended the Poets Corner Civic Association meeting tonight. Very pleased with our town government.

Anonymous said...

What the hell do you care who gets this money.
Everyone pays taxes except those that say that they are poor and live off the fat of the land.
Why should any taxpayer be deprived of receiving some kick back once in a while.
Is it taking money out of your pocket.
You never worry about the money that you give to Fairview .will you stop someone in that area from getting a check.
Stop crying if the state wants to help the economy so be it.

Anonymous said...

Wait you mean to tell me that apartment dwellers who pay taxes and have to send their children to private schools do not deserve the rebate.
BS.
Let's see how many in Fairview will submit their claims while they receive welfare under one name and work under another and to boot live in subsidised housing.
The apartment dwellers work they pay their taxes and are entitled to the rebate.

Anonymous said...

STAR relief is only available to those who own property and pay property taxes. For example, if you live in a co-op, and it's assessed at less than $6,000, you may be exempted from paying for school taxes under STAR and if your income is low enough, you may also receive a STAR rebate. Those who live in subsidized housing may be entitled to certain benefits, but STAR is not among them. Why Feiner wants to take away STAR money from seniors on fixed incomes who own homes or apartments with low assessments is beyond me. These folks are not welfare cheats and I challenge Feiner to find one who is. He should be ashamed of himself for scaring seniors this way.

Anonymous said...

Gee I guess he has forgotten that his parents are senior citizens also.
By the way Paul you too will reach the senior class some day let's see how you will be fighting for every dime you can get.

Anonymous said...

Seniors who pay school taxes should get more relief. Seniors who pay no taxes should not get STAR relief. I agree with Feiner, Abinanti and the Town Bd.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, let's really stick it to those seniors who don't pay school taxes, but still get STAR rebates. Let's hope they go hungry and can't afford to pay their heating bills this winter. And oh yeah, if they live in unincorporated Greenburgh, let's hope they can't pay their town taxes, especially with another whopping double digit tax hike on the way. That'll really teach em for voting for Feiner all these years. And maybe they'll remember to thank Abinanti next time around too.

Anonymous said...

What a mean spirited exchange.
Paul, I'm ashamed of you - you are more than willing to give all sorts of tax breaks and services to constituients - unless they happen to be seniors?
Why is this different than advocating, as you have done on numerous occasions in the past, that those who do not use the schools should not have to pay for them?
You're being arbitrary and capricious - and that is completely contrary to good government.

Anonymous said...

Dear Anon 9:43:
NY State has very limited resources. I am sure that Feiner, Abinanti, Town Board members would love it if every senior got a check from the state to help them live here. Unfortunately, NYS is broke. They should use the money in a smart way. Paying people who don't pay taxes is dumb.

Anonymous said...

Anon at 11:35 (Feiner in drag) just doesn't get it. The state isn't paying people who "don't pay taxes." The seniors who get STAR rebate checks who don't pay school taxes get the checks because they are property owners are on limited or fixed incomes who owe plenty in other property taxes which they do pay. School taxes account for only 60% of their tax bill. In unincorporated Greenburgh, thanks to Feiner's mismanagement, these seniors are paying 21% more in town taxes this year, and are expected to have to pay a lot more next year. They are also struggling with higher costs for food and heat this winter. That's why this particular Feiner self-seeking publicity stunt is so mean-spirited on his part. He just never thought about the people he was hurting the most. If NYS is broke as Feiner in drag says, then so is Greenburgh. If Feiner would eliminate TDYCC, he would save Unincorporated Greenburgh taxpayers $4 million. But he wouldn't dare do that because it would hurt the people who need the services TDYCC provides.

Anonymous said...

Why does anon at 11:35 (Feiner) think its wrong for NY state to give rebate checks to seniors who are already exempt from school taxes, but doesn't think it's wrong for the Town of Greenburgh to do the same thing for anyone who can't afford to participate in any recreational activity that the Town offers. Yes, that's right. The Town of Greenburgh, like NY State, has "very limited resources." The Town of Greenburgh, like NY State, to use Feiner's term, is "broke." Yet, the Town of Greenburgh has a policy of not denying anyone who cannot afford it the right to participate in any activity sponsored by the TDYCC or Parks and Rec. These people obviously pay no taxes.

Is giving people who pay no taxes the right to participate in Greenburgh's programs at the expense of Greenburgh's taxpayers just as "dumb" Mr. Feiner?

Anonymous said...

I'd like to know how much we're talking about here what these rebates to the seniors are. What is the avg amount of these checks? How many receive them? Just how much money are we talking about here?

I doubt it's very much.

We're PAYING 250 Xposue kids $70,000 per year to attend the program.

Could these seniors be getting anything close to this?

Anonymous said...

This blog topic is proof that Feiner can still play magician and pull rabbits out of a hat. This time he wants the public to worry about what the rabbits do afterwards. Everytime the Town Board is in hot water because they left the stove on too long; Feiner borrows someone else's rabbit to pull out of his hat. And residents fall for it.

Doesn't the Town Board have enough local problems of its own making to deal with, or is it going on hiatus to deal with the State's problems. Mind you, I am not addressing the issues; I am only concerned with the priorities of the Greenburgh Town Board.

Doesn't anyone get it yet. We got troubles here. Our officials need to deal with them before they go cruising for the next photo-op and headline.

The County Legislature doesn't need Greenburgh to pose for cameras. Nationally and internationally, capital punishment and Darfur's holocaust are still going on despite their repudiation by the Greenburgh Town Board.

And because I keep forgetting, please remind me which are the days in the week that Feiner finds it acceptable to work with the County government.

Maybe the State has got it right after all: people should be paid to live here.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Hal. This is an attempt to divert peoples attention to the issues that concern them and to create the illusion that the town is looking to save people money.

Don't fall for it.

Anonymous said...

Thank you 10
;50 10/23 AKA Alan Hochberg. Everything is OK in Greenburgh Township as long as Poets Corner get their piece of the pie.

As to the topic at hand, I guess seniors, at least the poor amonst them, have lived out their usefulness to Paul Feiner.

Why pray tell would he pick a Right Wing, Off-the-CHarts Republican to buddy up with against his core constituants? Many have said it before me. Before you PF start tearing down the county and state government build up your primary responsibility Greenburgh.

I bet Sarah Palin would even be critical of your fo-knee governance.

Some species eat their children, Paul only bites the hand that feeds him.

WARNing: if things get worse in Greenburgh, all bets are off. Feiner maybe going after YOU.

Anonymous said...

A typical day in Dogpatch USA

From: Paul Feiner
To: Al Regula, Judith Beville

Follow this up. We should be on their list.

___________________________________
Ripped from AOL

"I already live in the town Forbes believes the best retirement value
Tom Barlow
Oct 22nd 2008 at 2:00PM

Filed under: Retire

To my surprise, Forbes, in a newly released study, named Columbus, Ohio as the best place to spend my golden years. Surprise, because I already live there, and such strokes of good fortune are not often graced upon me. Dallas, Minneapolis, and Houston finished just behind Columbus on the list.

Why would our city gain such esteem? Certainly, we have relentless cloud cover nine months of the year that guards us from UV and skin cancer, and the OSU football team to keep us humble. But we must have something else going for us. Forbes looked at a number of stats, including housing cost (we have beau coup empty houses for sale), inflation, access to health care, cost of living, and job prospects.

We Columbusites benefit hugely from being the Buckeye State capital, the linch pin that helps keep our downtown thriving. The Ohio State University, the largest school in the country, provides a second core for jobs and culture. Unlike most of our Midwestern cities, Columbus, a late bloomer, was never overly dependent on heavy industry, so the loss of manufacturing jobs that has bedeviled Cleveland, Detroit and others has not impacted our city as much.

Other companies such as Nationwide Insurance and The Limited that have their home here also help support a healthy job market.

The city is large enough to bring in top entertainers and professional soccer and hockey, to have a well-served airport, but small enough that rush hour traffic still flows. It has a very diverse culture, with a large Somalian population, as well as many immigrants from around the world drawn by OSU, Honda of America and other companies. It also seems to provide a welcoming climate for the GLBT community.

For we blue-hairs, a couple of shortcomings temper our enthusiasm. Our mass transit system sucks, with buses infrequent except for the main thoroughfares. Funding for programs to serve the elderly are constantly under assault."

Anonymous said...

Paul the State is checking into welfare fraud together with medicaid ,are you doing the same .
You as supervisor have helped these people commit fraud .
You knew that they should not have received public assistance but did nothing.
You knew that they could very well afford paying for lunches but you did nothing.
You knew that they could pay to use the center but you gave it to them for free,
You gave parents the opportunity to collect assistance while giving them free baby sitting.
You knew what was going down but you did nothing.
We seniors paid our dues and what we can get is none of your business.
If the state is willing to help us out why not.
Should the gravey train be given to just a chosen few.
NO WAY JOSE.

Anonymous said...

Well Hal and all the doom and gloomers dont you look like as-es. So this was not a smoke screen. A legitimate issue, not an attempt to disguise a 20 + tax hike. Get a life leave the town

Anonymous said...

ACTING TDY COMMISSIONER WHITEHEAD LAUGHS AT AQUATICS DIRECTOR FIRING

I have been using the TDY pool for four years. But today was the last day I will ever enter through the doors of that Community Center. When I asked about what happened to Patricia Roper, in a vivid illustration of almost demonic proportions, Whitehead gleefully implied that she was no longer working at the Center. I was disgusted as to how giddy and cruel her mannerisms were at the point of my question. It was very clear that she took some type of perverted sick pleasure over someone’s loss of employment.

In the last two years Ms. Roper has been the Aquatics Director, I’ve seen a tremendous improvement in programs, staff courtesy, and equipment upgrades including a brand new electronic scoreboard, not to mention her determined advocacy of the FAST swim team. I don’t know what happened to cause Ms. Roper’s apparent termination but there was no reason for me as a Greenburgh resident to be subject to Whitehead’s attempt to denigrate and take joy from someone else’s pain. It seems hard to believe that with Whitehead’s attitude she’s employed at a community center. Her vindictive display is a poor example to our children.

Does Whitehead’s unprofessional behavior reflect the integrity, ethics, and motus operandi of you and our council members? Please answer this Paul.
OUTRAGED GREENBURGH TAXPAYER.

Anonymous said...

She was let go so her her a party.

Anonymous said...

Isn’t it funny that when someone brings up a concern about the TDY Center, a blogger here responds by saying, “Close that place!” Mr. Feiner, is that you???