NIFA Part 2

Tom Suozzi has to be one of the most trusting people in the world. He, in his plan to 'balance the county's budget,' he relies on three things. One is the red light cameras that have been installed throughout the county. Another is a cigarette tax of $2 a pack. Another is a tax on fast food. All require the approval of Albany.

The one thing that all of these ideas have in common is that they require the approval of Albany. When was the last time Albany approved anything? Especially for Nassau County? The majority party up there seems to spend most of its time fighting amongst itself. The governor is apathetic to Nassau's need. Even the NIFA report, an official and independent agency, casts doubts on the ability of Albany to get the job done and 'help Nassau.'

But will these taxes help us or hurt us. In the long term, they won't do any good for the county. Why? Well, they are short term fixes.

A cigarette tax does nothing to help the county raise money. In addition to being a horribly regressive tax, over time, cigarette taxes have not been shown to raise money. People can simply shift their spending from cigarettes to other things. Or, they can go out to the reservations on the East End of the Island and simply get them much cheaper. It's an income stream that diminishes over time. That's not the way to fix Nassau.

The second one of Suozzi's income streams is red light cameras. The residents of the county are split on the propriety of these cameras. Some think that they are a good thing and promote safety. Others think they make the roads more dangerous. That debate is entirely legitimate, but its neither here nor there.

I'm focused on Suozzi's motivations. Why is he so eager to get red light cameras installed in the County? First he said it was safety. That's fine and legitimate. Debatable but legitimate. But then, Suozzi goes out and literally rips the cameras out of a couple of intersections.

Why would he do that? Does he really care about safety? Nope! It's all about the money! Suozzi wants the revenue from those cameras. He wants the people to run the light and pay the price. If the county doesn't get the money, Suozzi's not interested. He wants it all. The Mayor of one of the hamlets (a local village that Suozzi wants to destroy, by the way) offered to split the money. Suozzi said no. He wants everything.

Finally, there's the fast food tax. Suozzi's betting it passes Albany. That's a longer shot than betting on a the Mets to make the series this year. But how about the justifications?

A fast food tax hits local businesses hard. Each one of these fast food restaurants is not owned by McDonalds or Burger King international. It's owned by a local businessman. He might live next door; she might work out next to you in the gym. And Suozzi wants to tap into the 'revenue' he thinks these businesses will generate. What's next? A tax on your morning cup of coffee?

The people who support this fast food tax cite all kind of 'public health' reasons for a tax. But do we really want Nassau County dictating what we can eat and for how much? But I don't want to debate on that. Rather, I focus on the real justification for the tax (simply to raise money) and the results. The result won't be to raise any more revenue. People will adjust their lives to the new tax. Instead of a burger, they'll go to the diner or just bring lunch from home. In the end, that won't lead to any more revenue for the county.

And the day of reckoning will come. Maybe it will take a few more years. But we're going to have to confront the consequences of the choices that Tom Suozzi has made. Suozzi has taken money out of the county's reserves during the good times. That leaves nothing in there for the rainy days. Suozzi has raised property taxes to unsustainable levels. He raises the sales tax, only to be caught in a bad economy and the inevitable result of increasing sales taxes (declines in revenue). He borrows for all kinds of expenses that aren't capital expenses, and leaves old and expensive bonds unrefinanced while he raises ever more money by selling off new bonds.

But by then, according to Suozzi's way of thinking, he'll be gone. He'll be in Albany or DC. And we're going to have to pay the piper. We don't want that. This November, vote for ED MANGANO.