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#Post#: 1050--------------------------------------------------
The ECNA Supports NYS Government Reorganization, Why Don’t You?
DIR By: Doug K
Date: April 14, 2020, 10:56 am
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An Opinion Piece... one that should make you think.
High New York State taxes, aren’t a myth. It’s not “fake news”
or some hoax invented by someone looking for personal gain. The
fact that New York State is the “highest taxed state to live
in", for the entire country, should be a concern to each and
every tax-paying resident in our state. We should be demanding
answers, asking what can be done to turn this around. It’s time
for citizens to become empowered and ask for answers... or maybe
we don't know that the answer is already there?
Fortunately New York Lawmakers are looking at solutions for our
high taxes, and have come up with methods to reduce the
over-taxation of New York residents. In fact, a State Law was
passed in 2010, the Government Reorganization and Citizen
Empowerment Act (or GRACE for short), with the sole purpose of
reducing unnecessary tax collection in New York State Villages.
It is a much needed change that most state residents know little
about, especially how it can save them thousands of dollars per
year. This IS an answer to high taxes in our state, but why
don't people listen?
The GRACE Laws changed existing NY State Laws regarding “local
governments”, making it easier to combine & consolidate Town &
Village municipalities together and thereby reduce “redundant
govt. services”. The GRACE laws also enabled local VILLAGE
governments within New York the ability to obtain a Village
Reorganization Study & Plan for FREE, just by requesting one
from state leaders. That study and plan becomes the guideline
the Village will follow, and also is voted on by Village
TAX-PAYING Residents prior to adoption. All of this is an
attempt to reduce the nearly 600 small local governments across
the state.
GRACE also provided a method for those same “taxpaying voters”
within a Village, to FORCE their local Village leadership, the 7
ELECTED Officials in a Village, to get this Government
Reorganization Plan initiated. It’s supposed to be used when
village leaders are “unwilling” to ask for the Reorg Plan
themselves. It’s called an Elector-Initiated Village
Reorganization and can accomplish the same goal through the
voting process, forcing Village Leaders to initiate the
Reorganization Study and develop the PLAN for the Village.
The goal of GRACE is to get these Village Reorganization Study &
Plans completed, so that Village taxpayers can judge for
themselves what the best course of action is for the Village
Government & their TAX dollars required to maintain that Village
Government. The PREFERRED method for this required
Reorganization Plan is to be supported & initiated by Village
Officials who acknowledge the GRACE changes, its goals, and
simply ask the State Secretary for the Study & Plan. It's all
free, yes...FREE.
Meeting this goal, getting a Village to initiate a study, is not
always the case, even though everyone should understand that
high Village Tax Burdens keep some people from spending tax
dollars” elsewhere, which really might help the economy and
those residents.
Instead, village tax dollars go towards perpetuating a level of
NYS Government deemed “unnecessary” by this GRACE law. Why
anyone would try to argue against the simple logic of this law
is beyond comprehension. But this village government issue isn’t
just about saving tax money, it’s about public officials who
seem too afraid of what the GRACE Reorganization plan might
reveal. It's about groups of village residents being scared in
submission by their local elected village leaders, who seem more
keen on keeping their positions, instead of serving the best
interest of their constituents, their Towns and their State.
Elected Village Officials must realize that asking for the
Government Reorganization Study is in every village resident’s
best interest, but not necessarily their own. But they are
ELECTED leaders for the Village, by Village Taxpayers, and if
they are “hiding” the truth from those same folks they have
“pledged” to look out for, there are not doing anyone any
good…but themselves. We all understand about “self-preservation”
especially in the area of jobs, but scoffing the New York State
laws meant to protect “The People” just for Village leaderships
own “personal gain” can’t be tolerated… at ANY level of
Government in New York.
The reason the ECNA supports the GRACE work is simple, it holds
our elected officials accountable, to the taxpayers that support
them and that they are supposed to be serving. If for no other
reason the Village Elected Officials should be initiating the
Government Reorganization Study simply to bring an END to the
division it is causing by NOT having done it already…it’s been
10 years. If NYS Lawmakers said it's time to study Village
Government, it's time Village Leadership listened...isn't it?
What are your Village Leaders waiting for?
What are your Village Leaders hiding?
The SOLUTION to the issue of Local Village Reorganization
shouldn’t be about anything else than FOLLOWING the LAW and
asking for the State-Funded Reorganization Study & Plan, the
same plan outlined in the GRACE law changes of 2010. That will
show taxpayers the true cost of Village Government and how much
they can SAVE if it is reorganized, consolidated or even
dissolved. The PLAN will outline what Village Services transfer
to the Town. The PLAN will show where TAX SAVINGS are possible
with little to no impact on services to the few square miles
called a village.
Don’t be deceived, NO ONE can say what will happen in any
Village under reorganization until the PLAN is created, and that
is done by an independent third party, free of charge, just for
the asking. So again, the ECNA believes that each Village
taxpayer owes it to their state, to ask their own LOCAL VILLAGE
GOVERNMENT to request the Reorganization Plan for their own
Village.
The Village Leaders YOU elected should be held accountable to
ALL New York State Laws, like the GRACE Laws.
It’s time to make that happen…
#Post#: 1051--------------------------------------------------
Re: The ECNA Supports NYS Government Reorganization, Why Don’t
You?
DIR By: Michael Caswell
Date: April 14, 2020, 7:48 pm
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Fairport residents! Currently, it is impossible to collect
physical signatures to invoke the GRACE study, so please sign
our change.org online petition.
If needs be, we will contact you later to collect a physical
signature.
Thank you.
Here's the link!
HTML http://chng.it/49N4S6pnRL
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