ARCC Supports Property Tax Cap

Just a couple of weeks ago, Granville Town Supervisor Rodger Hurley contacted the ARCC to see if the Chamber had a position on capping the annual tax levy in order to control future property tax increases. We were pleased to share with him that the ARCC's Board in 1995 passed a policy supporting a property tax cap.

In fact, twenty four states now have some form of limit on the annual increase in property tax revenue collected by a county, municipality, or school district. Somes of these states provide a fixed cap while others limit growth to a certain indicator such as the rate of inflation. Because New York's property tax levels are the highest in the nation, a property tax cap is viewed favorably by the business community across New York and focusing on capping the increase in the tax levy rather than on rates is clearly the best way to control government spending.

So count the ARCC in favor of a proposal to cap future increases in the Washington County tax levy...the Warren County tax levy...and everywhere else that our member organizations now operate. NY's exceedingly high property tax burden is a barrier to our ability to expand economic opportunity. These high tax rates make it more expensive for businesses to locate here and more expensive for the workers that they employ or need to recruit to live here. A cap on the annual increase in the tax levy will go a long way to helping us to overcome this barrier.