That's the New York State Commission on Property Tax Relief, chaired by Tom Suozzi, which issued its final report on Dec. 1. The governor issued a supportive press release, but mysteriously failed to include the commission-backed school property tax cap, or most of its mandate relief and other cost containment measures,in his executive budget released last week. That budget did, however, call for eliminating the STAR rebates for home owners, which would seem to strengthen the case for a tax cap. The governor was pressing for a tax cap in June, when the Suozzi commission released its preliminary report. That preliminary report also had some cost containment measures including a proposed revision of the Taylor Law to eliminate automatic raises when teachers' union contracts have expired. At that time, I asked Paterson at a press conference if he supported reforming the Taylor Law as recommended, and he ducked the question. So does he in fact support the Suozzi proposals on that, on special ed and on other ways for school districts to cut costs? Budget Division spokesman Matt Anderson said the governor is proposing long-term savings in school districts as in other areas through a new pension Tier 5, and also would give districts relief from Wicks Law mandates, which Suozzi recommended. As for the rest of the commission's recommendations, Anderson referred me to the governor's main press office, where spokeswoman Marissa Shorenstein said the Suozzi report "laid out a blueprint" for reform but is still under review, and that the governor has not endorsed everything in it. "We have not yet put together legislation on that," she said, and could not on Monday provide an estimate of when a program bill might be introduced.
But Paterson says he wants the budget passed by March 1, which means he is running out of time. In his budget proposal, he is calling for a cut of more than 3 percent in school operating aid. If that cut were to pass without the tax cap and cost containment measures proposed by Suozzi, the certain result would be massive increases in local school property taxes, which is precisely what the commission was created to avoid. But much of what Suozzi proposed is anathema to NYSUT and other powerful interest groups, which also don't want to see the aid cut. Most legislators will follow the special-interest lead by ignoring Suozzi, while claiming to be protecting taxpayers by opposing the aid cut. Will Paterson let them get away with that business-as-usual baloney?
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