Don't Be Fooled!

Dear Editor,

There are Republican candidates for Ulster County Legislature asking for your vote by touting misleading figures and statistics. Comparing Ulster County property tax rates to other states is meaningless. The main reason is that New York is the only state that requires counties to fund 50% of Medicaid costs. The state and federal government set the rules for Medicaid, and then New York requires counties to pick up half of the Medicaid charges. Also, counties in some states have lower property taxes because they have higher sales taxes and/or higher income tax. A better comparison is to see how Ulster County ranks among other New York counties, since we all operate under the same set of policies.

A web site, seethroughny.org compares and ranks New York county spending. County spending is simply the total county budget divided by the number of residents. Ulster County ranks 37 out of 56 counties in county government spending. Ulster County government spends $1711 per person compared to a statewide average of $1907 per person. Ulster County government spends 10.3% less than the average New York County.

Governing at any level essentially requires prioritizing spending of scarce resources for needed government services. The figures show that the Ulster County Legislature has been doing an excellent job of wisely using your county tax dollars. We will continue to pave, maintain and plow our county roads, dispatch police and fire when you call 911, have a strong law enforcement presence by the Sheriff’s road patrol and provide a host of other critical services in the most cost effective way possible.

Remember the infamous proclamation by George H. W. Bush, “Read my lips: no new taxes.”

My running mates Marcy Goulart, Alverta Jones, Nicole Tucker and I recognize that these are difficult economic times and promise to carefully review, monitor and measure the effectiveness of all county spending and make informed choices while balancing the needs of the already overburdened taxpayers.

Gary Bischoff
Ulster County Legislator

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