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NEWS FROM THE OFFICE OF

ULSTER COUNTY COMPTROLLER

ELLIOTT AUERBACH
ELLIOTT AUERBACH COUNTY COMPTROLLER 244 FAIR STREET KINGSTON, NEW YORK 12401 PHONE: (845) 340-3529 eaue@co.ulster.ny.us
www.youreyesonlulster.com

AVOIDING THE TAX TINDERBOX:


AUERBACH PROMOTES ELIMINATING ALBANY FROM LOCAL SALES TAX POLITICS
For Immediate Release Kingston, New York (February 21,2014)Ulster County Comptroller Elliott Auerbach is promoting a revision to NYS Law that would allow county legislatures in New York State to set their sales tax rates without interference from the New York State Legislature. County legislatures should be vested with the sole authority to determine if an additional sales tax is to be levied without interference from the State Legislature, said Auerbach. Auerbach cites the recent showdown over the State Legislatures months of delay in reauthorizing Ulster Countys full sales tax as just one of the motivations for the proposal. The current state law set the stage for political gamesmanship between the County and the State, ignited a volatile discourse between elected officials and undermined the budget process for both the County Executive and the County Legislature, says Auerbach. But Auerbach is quick to point out that the proposal is not merely a knee-jerk reaction to Ulsters recent tussle with Albany. While the tax in question was ultimately restored, Auerbach said it is a home-rule issue, and County governments throughout the State have a stake in it. It is simply not in the best interest of County taxpayers to allow the NYS Legislature to impede a countys home rule authority. The broad appeal of the measure is evidenced by the fact that Auerbach is working with and through the NYS Association of Counties (NYSAC), which has also called for reform of the process. Let county legislatures determine the best mix of locally raised revenues they deem most effective for local taxpayers, said Auerbach. The ramifications of Ulster Countys loss of 1% of its sales tax revenue in December 2013 and January 2014 wont be known until late March which is when the final tallies are completed, said Auerbach, but we are watching this closely. Auerbach will base his analysis on the actual sales tax received for those two months in the past three years. In the meantime, the Comptroller will recommend to both the Ulster County Legislature and Executive that they join the NYSAC Home Rule initiative.

The mission of the Ulster County Comptrollers Office is to serve as an independent agency of the people and to protect the public interest by monitoring County government and to assess and report on the degree to which its operation is economical, efficient and its financial condition sound.

Ulster County Sales Tax Collected for December and January County Share $12,660,305 $12,629,938 $12,748,435 TBD

Two Month Period Dec 2010/Jan 2011 Dec 2011/Jan 2012 Dec 2012/Jan 2013 Dec 2013/Jan 2014

Average County Share

12,679,559

All New York State counties impose a local sales tax in addition to the 4% State sales tax. State statue allows a local sales tax rate of up to 3% to be imposed upon adoption of a local law, for a maximum of 7%. State law also allows a temporary increase beyond the 7%, but only with state legislative approval every two years. New York State collects the sales tax from vendors and then returns the counties share on a scheduled time frame, typically within 1 -2 months after the collection. Upon receipt of sales tax from the State, Ulster County distributes 11.5% of receipts to the City of Kingston and 3% of receipts among the 20 towns within the County. The 11.5% returned to the City is based on an agreement and the 3% to the towns is distributed based on property values within the municipality. Comptroller Auerbach is a member of the Standing Committee on Taxation and Finance, NYS Association of Counties. At NYSACs annual meeting this month Auerbach moved the motion urging legislative reform which was passed unanimously. The bottom line is that Albanys leverage on the sales tax issue creates a tax tinderbox for County governments and the State should not have their hands on the fuse.

The mission of the Ulster County Comptrollers Office is to serve as an independent agency of the people and to protect the public interest by monitoring County government and to assess and report on the degree to which its operation is economical, efficient and its financial condition sound.

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