[Note crucial information below from County Comptroller Diane Jablonski pertinent to what the final levy on the county property tax will be, based on vacancy factorand fund balance; kudos to Leg. Fred Knapp for his tireless efforts on this particularissue; note as well the nonsensical nature of the CountyExecutive's proposed cuts to county funding for Workforce Investment Board andshort-term counseling for troubled youth in Youth Bureau next year in the face of too many of our youth still turning to crime because of lack of programming (recall previous posts to this blog with GET's Rob Lunski's letter and Michael Trimble's and Norene Coller's letters re: EMC as well...Joel (876-2488/ joeltyner@earthlink.net (and don't forget next Wednesday's full board vote on county budget-- your chance to speak out once again on YOUR priorities for our county's budget and tax policy at that meeting Dec. 6th at 7:30 pm before the entire County Legislature on the sixth floor of our County Office Building at 22 Market Street in Poughkeepsie-- pass it on!)]
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For well over a year now I've been pushing to make our Dutchess' recycling law real; last night our county came a bit closer to this. I got unanimous passage last night in our County Legislature's Budget, Finance, and Personnel Committeefor recycling containers to finally be placed in our county parks. The next stepis to make sure that all county office buildings are fully recycling-- and to make sure that all businesses in the county are in full compliance with the county lawthat's been on the books for fifteen years calling on every business to recyclepaper (along with other items). Our county's Recyclables Oversight Committee still needs to be rejuvenated as well.
Our county should also delay no longer in following the examples of Wayne and Yates counties in the Finger Lakes region of the state and recycle all plastics #1 through#7 (instead of just #1 and #2 as we do). Markets have been found here in the Northeastand across the country for plastics #3 through #7, with just a bit of effort. Studies have also proven that communities that allow recycling of all plastics greatly increasethe collection of plastics #1 and #2.
Finally, making sure that we in Dutchess are doing everything we can to address global warming includes doing as much recycling as possible-- as the official websitefor Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" notes (at ClimateCrisis.net):
'Be sure you're recycling at home-- you can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide a year by recycling half of the waste your household generates.' [ http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/whatyoucando/index3.html ]
Hopefully this is something that will be taken into consideration at the "ClimateChange in New York's Hudson Valley" conference Monday at the PoughkeepsieGrand Hotel put together by the Hudson River Environmental Society and the state'sDepartment of Environmental Conservation, which I'll be attending."[see http://www2.marist.edu/~en04/CCM.HTML ;http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061126/NEWS04/611260322/1008]
For more information on how the Western Finger Lakes Authority recycles all plastics#1 through #7, see:http://www.wfingerlakesauthority.org/?inc=proper_recycling.htm ;http://www.allplasticbottles.com ;http://www.plasticsrecycling.org/market_development/materials_buyers_sellers/index.asp.
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RE: OTHER AREAS OF COUNTY BUDGET...
Kudos to County Legislator Fred Knapp in particular, along with Budget, Finance,andPersonnel Committee member Legislators Roger Higgins, Sandy Goldberg, and Fred Bunnell,for drafting a budget proposal on behalf of the Democratic Caucus that found a sound fiscal way to retain crucialcounty services, lower the property tax levy-- and reject the County Executive'sproposal to force county residents to pay sales tax on clothing and shoes again (see http://www.DutchessNY.gov )...
We actually got every single Republican on our County Legislature's Budget, Finance, and Personnel Committee to vote last night for what is, in essence, a Democraticbudget (BFP Committee vote took place after 9 pm after over eight hours of wrangling)...
Originally the G.O.P. on the BFP Committee wanted to go along with County Exec'sproposal to make county residents pay sales tax on clothing and shoes again; we got them turned around on this...
The fact is that the sales tax has been proven to be just as regressive as the propertytax by various economists like folks from the Fiscal Policy Institute, Citizens for Tax Justice, and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. 80% of New Yorkers now actually pay more in sales taxes than they do in property taxes; seehttp://www.ITEPnet.org/wp2000/ny%20pr.pdf ...
County Comptroller Diane Jablonski recently provided us with this analysis below re: vacancy factor for 2007-- crucial information about approximately $5.4 millionbeing left over at the end of the year in the county budget's payroll accountwhich would automatically roll over to add to the fund balance (this information convinced Leg. Fred Knapp, Minority Leaders Roger Higgins and Sandy Goldberg, andthe entire Democratic caucus to come to the conclusion that more of the fund balancethan currently proposed should be used to lower the property tax levy on homeownersin 2007; Knapp led drafting of Democratic proposal):
"I ran a report pulling in positions, temp help, straight time Overtime, andOvertime for the whole county through 11/29. The original budget for 2006 was $93,546,998;the amended budget was $100,525,070. YTD we have expended $83,972,328.81 with $16,553,741.19left. (84%). The Current month transactions for November is $7,416.636.78 (2 payrolls)...Thereare 3 more payrolls for the year. Dec 1, Dec 15, and Dec 29. -- approximately $11,124,954if I determine an average payroll by dividing the November number in 2 and multiplyingby 3. That would make the YE total of $95,097,282-- leaving a balance in those lines of approximately $5.4M."
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I continue to work on (hopefully with your help out there!) building support across the county and in the County Legislature to make the common-sense budget initiatives below reality sooner as opposed to later:
[contact countylegislature@co.dutchess.ny.us to make 'em reality sooner!]
1. Reject the County Executive's proposed cut to county-funded senior home care--"mostseniors prefer home care or assisted living to nursing homes" (from http://www.NursingAssistants.net). See page 127 of the County Executive's Tentative Budget for 2007-- it reportsthatthere will be 1,094 less county-paid home care visits to seniors next year-- thisis unconscionable and inexcusable. Period. [Also-- providing enough home care for seniors in our county saves tax dollars because Medicaid reimbursements for nursing home care won't be so high (keeping seniors cared for at home is obviouslyless expensive than in nursing homes-- besides usually being much more comfortablefor them).]
2. Reject the County Executive's proposed cut to short-term counseling for at-riskyouth-- page 159 of the County Executive's Tentative Budget reports that there will only be funding next year for 84% of the short-term counseling for youth inthe county's Youth Bureau budget compared to this year's funding. [See http://www.FightCrime.organd much more on this below; read the papers-- there obviously are still quite afew troubled youth still getting into trouble; also read Kara Singleton's letterto the editor from this week's Weekly Beat on the currently inadequate levelof programs for kids in our county now (I actually used to work with Kara years ago in the 90's at Community Family Development).]
3. $100,000 Scholarship fund at Dutchess Community College for fire and rescue squadvolunteers across the county (keeping volunteers saves tax dollars compared to paidfire; I've contacted DCC on this; currently-- unfortunately-- no such programnow exists; this should change).
4. Restore funding for corrections officers training to 2002 level (Jail AdministratorGary Christensen spoke of the need for this during Budget, Finance, and PersonnelCommittee review of the county budget earlier this month-- this should save money on claims from CO's being hurt on the job and provide for a safer workplace for all concerned).
5. Restore funding for an independent Environmental Management Council-- insteadof a new "Environmental Programs Coordinator" (see pertinent letters belowfrom EMC folks like Michael Trimble andNorene Coller); also see http://www.PetitionOnline.com/SaveEMC .
6. Save tax dollars by stopping chronically mentally ill homeless county residentsfrom cycling in and out of local hospital, jail, and mental hospital-- start "housing-first"program setting up such individuals with their own apartments and support services(Westchester cut their homeless population in half this way with Pathways to Housing;New York City, San Francisco, and Chattanooga have found success with this programas well; Jail Administrator Gary Christensen told county legislators recently thereare five to twenty homeless county residents in our Jail).[see http://www.PetitionOnline.com/House1st ; http://www. PathwaystoHousing.org ;http://www.pathwaystohousing.org/html/housing-study.html ;http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/special_reports/2005/story/5608661p-5591116c.html?current_report=mentally_ill]
7. Implement a bail loan fund like Tompkins County's-- and ALL common-sense alternatives to incarceration suggested by our county'sCriminal Justice Council-- such as housing for electronic monitoring of county residentscurrently without homes, and additional probation officers and social workers forexpanded and expedited juvenile electronic monitoring, court reporting, mental healthscreenings, and drug treatment programming.[see http://www.PetitionOnline.com/ATIs ; also some information on some of this in the County Executive's budget message at http://www.DutchessNY.gov ; note--kudos to Leg. Fred Bunnell for his success in getting electronic monitoring/housingoption into county budget amendments package passed last night; for bail loan fundsee:http://www.ithacanet.org/Orgs/OAR/oarfiles/geninfo.htm . More funding for re-entryprogramslike Peter Young Housing Industries and Training (PYHIT.com), Lancaster County's(PA) Job Court, and Harlem's Community Justice Center Parole Re-Entry Court would also save muchmore that initial investment; see:http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6161848 ;http://www.courtinnovation.org/demo_parole.html .]
8. Fully fund (with $100,000) our local microenterprise loan fund (GET: Gatewaysto EntrepreneurialTomorrows)-- currently the only funding GET has for actual loans to budding microentrepreneursis the $35,000 it now shares with a similar nonprofit in Westchester County.[see http://www.GetHudsonValley.org ; http://www.MicroBizNY.org ; letter below from GET's Lunski himself]
9. "Shred-Mobile" to combat identity theft (as in Westchester County)[see http://www.westchestergov.com/currentnews/2006pr/Shredmobile.htm ]
10. Adds to Consumer Affairs website-- list of ten worst businesses; firewood warnings(as in Suffolk County).[see http://www.co.suffolk.ny.us/webtemp3.cfm?dept=3&ID=20 ]
11. List of restaurants without trans fats on county Health Department website (asin Westchester County; our County Legislature's Clerk has agreed to send outmy letter to area restaurants on this, but agreement has not been forthcoming thusfar from the Health Dept. to put results up on their website).[see http://www.westchestergov.com/Health/TransFat/TF.htm ]
12. Prescription drug take-back program with local pharmacies to protect drinkingwater (as in Maine)-- at least a pilot program/forum should be possible in 2007.
http://www.maine.gov/tools/whatsnew/index.php?topic=Senatedemsall&id=25170&v=Article
13. Interactive map on county Health Department website of MTBE/other groundwatercontamination [with links to information from NYSDEC, Albany Times-Union, and ToxicsTargeting.com][see http://www.timesunion.com/TUNews/SpecialReports/HiddenPoison/index.aspxhttp://www.ToxicsTargeting.com ]
14. Alternative non-salt de-icing materials for county roads to protect drinkingwater (as now in Rhinebeck-- thanks to Highway Superintendent Kathy Kinsella)
[see http://www.ecostudies.org/road_salt.html ]
15. Help Dutchess County Arts Council with new capital projects fund for Center for the Performing Arts, Mill Street Loft, etc. (I've been pushing hard for this within the Democratic caucus).
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Why funding should not be cut in the 2007 county budget for our county's WorkforceInvestment Board-- see http://www.DCWIB.org ...
"According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2005 American Community Survey, the education level of the approximate 186,186 Dutchess County residents 25 yearsand According to the national accepted average, 1 out of 5 adults (over the age of 16 and not in school) are functionally illiterate; which means that a person cannot function independently because of a lack of basic reading, writing and/orspeaking skills. When applied to Dutchess County, it can be inferred that there are a number of residents who have attained higher education credentials that are, or would be deemed, functionally illiterate. This is one reason that it is equally important to emphasize the need for skills development and the application of knowledgeas it is to encourage education and lifelong learning."
Page 421 of the County Executive's Tentative Budget notes that county fundingfor the Dutchess County Workforce Investment Board is completely zeroed out for next year-- from $115,000 this year to literally nothing next year (this-- in theface of the Youth Resource Development Corporation and YWCA shutting their doorsjust last year)...
Regarding this past Saturday's Poughkeepsie Journal editorial (and coverage in today's paper)--
I agree that it's a good thing for folks in the community to cooperate with law enforcement officials to address gang activity from the likesof Partners N Crime; you do the crime, you do the time-- fine with me...
But the names of some of the gang members arrested do ring a bell with me; I recall teaching many of them in the late 90's when I was subbing extensively in Poughkeepsie schools...
My point is that if federal, state, county, and local governments invested more in programs for children up front we would save tax dollars down the road-- and stop kids from turning to a life of crime...
It's a point that the folks at FightCrime.org make effectively over and overagain...
Note the letter to the editor just below on this from Kara Singleton that came out in yesterday's Weekly Beat (I worked with Kara at Community Family Developmentback in the late 90's as well; Stefon Singleton was murdered about a year ago)...
Let's stop any more of our youth from turning to gangs-- and let's save tax dollars-- by truly investing in our youth (and our future)....
Our county's new Youth Bureau Director Will Sanchez told me himself this week that such services in our county are still under-funded and that many more program slots are still needed...
[Many in Poughkeepsie and across the county recall how Lincoln Center "back in the day" provided needed recreational activities in the day and evening-- we need something like this again-- badly.]
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From the Weekly Beat...
Positive youth outlets needed
To the Editor:
The increase of violence and the need for beneficial activities for the youth wasa subject that caught my attention during the city's Common Council meeting.Peggy Dennis was a speaker on the safety of the youth in Poughkeepsie. She expressedthe need for after-school activities, youth programs and the increase in deaths of young people. These were great subjects to bring up at the meeting because ofthe urgency.
There should be an increase in extra-curricular programs for youth because withouta place to go kids are using the streets as a hangout. In the streets, youth areintroduced to a rough lifestyle, a way of life that may lead to crime, violence,gangs or even death. Although not every teen that hangs out in the streets is influencedby the very rough way of life, this doesn?t mean that it will not have a significanteffect on the life of an impressionable teen.
There is a necessity for positive activities in the community to counteract the striving temptation of the streets. When there are more activities for youth to participate in, they will not have to look to the streets for entertainment. It will be a great accomplishment for the city to establish a place where children and teens have positively influenced.
The lack of homework centers, study groups, intramural sports and clubs for the youth is working against the community. As a neighborhood, we need to take our childrenfrom the streets and place them in productive programs. The seed has to be plantedinto the lives of youth to ensure that they will not stray to the streets for activity.The Common Council should take the concerns expressed by Dennis and discuss it furtherbecause it is extremely serious. Every minute wasted could be another life lost,or another young person fallen captive to the streets.
Kara Singleton
Poughkeepsie
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