"I think the narrative has gone askew as we talk about what to do about this," said Tim Hoefer, executive director of the government watchdog Empire Center for Public Policy. "We are one of the states with the highest property taxes in the nation, and the cost drivers are partially at the local level, but they're also driven by mandates from the states that aren't paid for." Read More
Empire Center Executive Director Tim Hoefer sat down with Liz Benjamin to discuss the Empire Center's new report that examines the potential to save taxpayer money by sharing municipal services. Read More
Municipalities are grappling with Gov. Andrew Cuomo's challenge to consolidate and collaborate in order to garner the property tax rebates for their citizens included in the 2014-15 state budget. Sharing services looks to be the path forward, because taxpayers time and again reject mergers. Read More
Local governments should consider sharing services to help reduce costs and maintain services to residents, suggests a new report from the Empire Center for Public Policy. “Municipal Cooperation: Sharing Services in NY,” explores the different ways localities in New York can and do share services to save money. Read More
A new state budget provision would provide property tax rebates to homeowners in localities where local governments reduce costs and maintain services through shared services. Read More
Shared services, dissolution and mergers remain viable options for taxpayers and elected officials facing challenging fiscal environments and historically high taxes Read More
A challenging fiscal environment and notoriously high property taxes have raised structural and service issues to new levels as communities explore the potential efficiencies to be gained through shared services, dissolution and consolidation. Read More