County fees burden homeowners

To the Editor:

This month I received a four-page pamphlet in the mail from the county entitled “Nassau County News Network.” The first page is a letter from County Executive Ed Mangano. He touts the county’s recently adopted 2011 budget, which he says provides a “surgical approach” to reforming the way Nassau County does business, and says that this year’s budget closes the county’s deficit “without burdening homeowners.” I’m used to reading nonsense in these types of mailings, but this is just too much.

As a homeowner, I can assure you that the actions taken by the Mangano administration are going to create a burden on my family. First, I pay school taxes, and the county’s scheme to penalize school districts for the county’s mistakes in assessments, which Mangano refers to as elimination of the “county guarantee,” will be passed directly to me through increased school taxes.

Second, the Republicans’ decision to begin charging schools and libraries for sewer services is also going to be borne by homeowners like me through higher school and library taxes. Finally, the Republicans have raised every fee imaginable. For example, I have a cabana at Nickerson Beach, and my bill for next year went from $2,100 to $3,400 — a 62 percent increase!

Rather than take responsibility and fix the problems with the county, Mangano, with the support of Legislators Howard Koppel, Denise Ford and the other Republicans, have chosen to pass the county’s problems on to the school districts, homeowners and regular people who use facilities like Nickerson Beach. Mangano says his actions have not created a burden on homeowners. Who do they think they’re kidding?

Rich Schurin

Island Park