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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1984-12-04 F TOWN- BOARD TOWN OF GROTON Public Hearing Tuesday , December 4 , 1984 BOARDt ( *present ) OTHERS PRESENT : *Teresa Robinson , Supervisor Jack Fitzgerald , Town Attorney *Ellard Sovocool Colleen Pierson , Town Clerk *Gordon VanBenschoten Leland Cornelius , Highway Supervisor *Donald Cummings Charles Aankin Joseph Graham Bradley and Diane Eldred Floyd and Sharon Stroud Betty Sperger Barney Marlett Teresa Robinson , Supervisor , opened the meeting at 7s38 p . m . by reading the Public Notice for a Public Hearing to consider adoption of a local law regarding Veteran ' s Exemptions from Real Property Tax . T . Robinson opened the floor to comments by the public . RANKINs I am a taxpayer within the Township . I would like to say there are two sides to this issue . The Village did this a couple of months ago ; I know this is a tough decision . On one hand you have the veterans who pose a valid point for what they did for the country . On the other hand you people are put up there to make laws good for all the people . You have to make good financial decisions and it is tough . In the Groton area we have three municipal governments and they have done a good job in the past on financial issues . The Village is in good shape ; the Town budget is in good shag and the school is running along okay . We have no real war storys like Erie County has . I think if you don ' t have the proper information as to the affects to the Town you should follow similar steps to the Village and opt out now and appoint a committee and study the process . The Village , I ' m sure , would be willing to share any information with the Town . r F . STROUD : I am a verteran from the U . S . Army ; .I own a trailer . I believe some of the veterans , like me , are on a fixed income . Now the Government is going to cut us . I have not had a COLA in 4 years . You have a chance to help us out , it would help most of the veterans there is . S . STROUD : How is this going to affect the veterans . Is every veteran going to be affected or only veterans with special qualifications ? FITZGERALD : There are certain guidelines as to the percentage of the relief you are going to get . It is set up in the Statute . All verterans will be affected by it as they are property o�qners or renters . The Statute provides : a 10 -year real property tax exemption of 15 % . of assessed value not to exceed $ 12 , 000 to veterans who served durng wartime ; - an additional 10 % , not to exceed $ 8 , 000 to veterans who served in a combat zone , also for a 10 - year period ; - an additional exemption to disabled veterans equal to 50 % of their disability rating , not to exceed $ 40 , 000 , Municipalities can grant reduced exemptions . Beings 1 ' Municipalities that grant exemptions pursuant to Section 458 - a have the option of reducting the maximum exemptions discussed above to $ 9 , 000 , $ 6 , 000 and $ 30 , 000 respectively or $ 6 , 000 , $ 4 , 000 , and $ 20 , 000 respectively . " You would have to fit into the different categories to get relief . All veterans would be affected by it . For example if a veteran who rented does not qualify for exemption , the property owner could , as a result of increased taxes , increase the rent . Everybody is going to be affected . F . STROUD : Does anyone know the overall affect in the Town of Groton ? How many veterans there are and the cost ? ROBINSON : Not realy , that is part of the problem . We have two different sets of figures sent to us . Both are suppose to be accurate . - -3- We are not sure what the affect is going to make on the Township . We know it is going to affect everybody when it does ; the taxes have to be paid by somebody . Those that don ' t pay taxes , the others will pay . MARLETT : I have attended all these meetings in the area.. I am a World War II verteran and a POW . I have an exemption now. When I got the exemption I had $ 750 that I could apply for . I could have the full $ 5 , 000 but I never went after it . At that time my property was assessed at $ 5 , 000 . $ 750 was a big part of $ 5 , 000 . The $ 5 , 000 has excalated up but the exemption has not . I feel it is unfair . If we were given a percentage of the evaluation then we should be entitled to the same percentage . I know the law does not say that ; I don ' t know how it would balance out . j The Korean and Vietnam verterans have not gotten anything . World War II veterans have got something but have lost a big share of it . I attended the County meeting in Ithaca . Down there they were talking that it - might be between 14 and 20 cents per thousand per taxpayer ; it might go up . Myself , I own a home but also am renting property . If my taxes went up I don ' t think I would raise the people ' s rent . 20 cents a thousand say on a property of $ 20 , 000 is rot that much . Myself , I like to see you vote for the verterans and give us what we lost and give the Korean and Vietnam veterans something . On the one hand I would benefit because I am a veteran and on the other hand I would be paying because of my other two properties . I am on both sides of the fence and I would like to see you vote for it . SPERGER : I have been reading articles in the newspaper and it appears renters won ' t get any benefit from the law . Who says that they can ' t go out and buy a house like others have done . ROBINSONo We can ' t be the judge of why people do things . We are dealing with the exemption of people in the Town of Groton . I understand it will affect all veterans ; a lot of veterans have not applied for the present exemptions ; like Barney said he only applied for part of his . Some did apply and some did not because it didn ' t make any difference with their property . Some of these are retiring now and they might like to consider applying . It ' s an unknown quantity of what we are dealing with . We have to think about all these things . • - 4 - MARLETT : At the County meeting someone had done a lot of research . There were two different figures . One was 20 million would come off of the assessment . According to DeLibro , Veterans Administrator , he came up with a figure half of that . , That ' s where I came up with the 14 to 20 cents ; the difference of the two assessments . I don ' t mean what that means to our Town . ROBINSON : I received two different figures too . I am not sure which is truer . MARLETT : The County went half of what the exemptions were and after a year they could up it if they wanted to . You could do like the Village did and do nothing . 11 ROBINSON : The State did not pass the law , they put it on us . MARLETT : I don ' t know who passed the first one for the World War II veterans . FITZGERALD : That was the State . The Federal Government might have suggested it be done but the State taxes real property . MARLETTs At that time my property was worth $ 5 , n00 but nothing has been done to adjust it all these years . FITZGERALA : There is now a provision in the revision of 458 - a which allows the taxing municipality to increase the flat exemption on property if they go to full evaluation . I think it might be , too late to do that ; but it would bring some relief . Your argument is a valid one . The first exemption was worth it but values have gone up . S . STROUD : How many members of the Board will be affected if this is passed ? ROBINSONs 'No are veterans . Are theere any other comments ; this is why we are here . B . ELDRED : I thank we should pass it . You enjoy your right to this meeting . What do you think the veterans gave you ; it ' s time to give a little bit back . The right for assembly ; that ' s what your veterans did for you , nothing more , nothing less . RANKIN : An aspect of being a Township is there are a lot of agricultural area . The farmers have had -money problems . The farmers might be in trouble with increased taxes . ROBINSON : I don ' t think anybody disputes that veterans should have something . The biggest problems is deciding what to do . - S- D . ELDRED : With the research you did , what did you find out ? ROBINSON : I have some figures that came out , these are the ones I was given . I ' m not sure how accurate they are . Some places we thought they were too high . Roughly , the current veterans exemptions is 40 ; Groton , outside the Village is 44 ; altogether it is 84 people who are getting it Tow . The estimated eligible veterans in the Village is 360 ; outside the Village is 386 for a total of 746 . That was given to us ; we thought it might be a little high . Other figures came from the veterans they were lower . Their amounts estimateedypinc6er the new law totaled about $ 6 , 123 , 600 . You don ' t know who , which veterans , will apply . Where a veteran of the Second World War is at the retirement age this would be a good benefit for them . Given the chance if they have not taken it before they might take advantage of it now . Some peole from the Korean War who have property may want to take advantage of it now ; they may not have had the chance before . Veterans from Vietnam too . It is a guessing game right now . It is kind of hard to deal with it . MARLETT : Would that encourage some people that don ' t own homes to buy because they might be able to afford the taxes ? ROBINSON : I don ' t think it will make much difference . MARLETT : In Ithaca that was one reason given , they were waiting and watching to see what happened . They were trying to decide where to make their home . They made the comment that if they could get a benefit in a County close by where they worked they might go to that county to live . I don ' t know if they would or not . SFERGER : Of those veterans , how many rent and how many own property in the town? ROBINSON : We don ' t have those figures . Someone was suppose to be here with more information for us tonight . S . STROUD : DeLibro was called out of town . Somebody was suppose to be here to read a letter concerning this . D . ELDRED : Where did you get those figures from that you have ? ROBINSON : From the County . I don ' t know what the Board will decide . We will do it at our next Board meeting December 11 . You will have a reduction in the County taxes . In the Village it will help ; in the Twon it won ' t have much effect . The Twon has not had County taxes in nine years . f S . STROUD : This will not take affect until 1986 if you do vote ? If you wait until next year it will be 1987 ? ROBINSONs You can opt in any time . If you opt to do it you can ' t get out for ten years . KARLETTs The County went with something but they can up it if they want too ROBINSON : You can raise the exemption but not lower it ; you can ' t back out . It is a learning experience for all of us . There is noone who does not want the veterans to have the benefits but they don ' t want to hurt themselves . MARLETT : The widows of veterans would qualify also . FITZGERALD : That is what I have read too , but we don ' t get a lot of information . The State brochure it is not mentioned . B . ELDRED : Did you go to the County meeting ? ROBINSON : No , I was working and unable to go . B . ELDRED : It would have been beneficial for the members if the Town Board had gone there . ROBINSONs Our Town Representative was there . B . ELDRED : Why is he not here tonight ? It would have been beneficial to the Town to know what the County was thinking . ROBINSON : If we decide to make this into law we would have to have another Hearing . Are there any other remarks or questions ? SPERGER : You are saying there gould be another Public Hearing after the law was passed ? ROBINSON : No , if we decide to pass a law we would have the Public Hearing before the final decision . SPERGER : If you pass it next week , to what purpose would another Public Hearing be ? ROBINSON . We would be saying we would be interested in having a local law; we would have a Public Hearing . At the Hearing if people said they did not want the law we would not have it . If they wanted it we would go for it . FITZGERALD : Before any law is adopted the Town has to have a Public Hearing . t MARLETT3 I have attended three of these meetings with more pro attending than con . In one place they voted for the law and in another they voted against . If there are so many against passing this law , where are they . ROBINSONt If there are no more comments we ' ll close the Hearing . I , MARGARET A . PALMER , DO CERTIFY that at the Public Hearing in the Town of Groton , County of Tompkins , State of New York on VETERAN ' S EXEMPTION FROM REAL PROPERTY TAXES , did take the minutes of said Hearing and the foregoing is a true and exact copy , to the best of my ability . ,n