I signed up for email notices from Rep Gillabrand. The meeting is in our backyard. I like her because she has offices right in the heart of Saratoga (and some other cities). Everyone has been rightfully grumbling about propety taxes now is our time to be heard.
The E- letter is below on the town meeting.
Dear Friend,

Property taxes are sky-rocketing for upstate New York homeowners. Finding solutions to help upstate New Yorkers save money on their federal taxes is a priority of mine in Congress.

As your advocate to the federal government in Congress, I want to address your concerns in Congress. That is why I will be holding a Town Hall meeting on taxes this Saturday, December 8, at 1:30pm. The meeting will be located at the Round Lake Village Hall, located at 49 Burlington Ave.

This is a great opportunity for you to share your opinions and concerns on the issues that matter to you. I will be discussing a new bill I am cosponsoring to help you save money on your property taxes AND there will be experts on hand to give tips on how to save money on your federal taxes.

I hope to see you at the Round Lake Village Hall this Saturday at 1:30pm!

Sincerely,

Kirsten E. Gillibrand
Member of Congress

I'm not sure what she can do about our local school taxes. That is more of a state issue. We really need Spitzer, Bruno, and Silver to fix that. It's nice that she cares, but caring and being in a position to help are two different things.

Maybe its less about reducing the burden, and more about trying to get the federal government to eliviate our taxes by contributing a certain percentage.

(fat chance)

Mrs. Gillibrand is running for re-election. The first job of a freshman (or any MC) for that matter is to get themselves re-elected. Her polling and focus groups must show that real property taxes are something to demonstrate concern about if she is going to get to serve a second term in this "R" district.

Hopefully everyone was suitably awed with a MC in the Village of Round Lake. But if she is really concerned about upstate New York residents (voters or non-voters)regardless of what was in her E-newsletter hyping her concern regarding rising property taxes I hope everyone who stopped by took the opportunity to tell her that property taxes are one of the powers (10th Amendment of the Bill of Rights)reserved for the states. She should be working with her Columbia County neighbor Governor Spitzer, her New York City connection Speaker Silver as well as with Senate Majority Leader Bruno if she wants to reduce upstate real property taxes. I'm sure the governor, speaker and majority leader would love to hear her suggestions on cutting state spending in order to reduce real property taxes.
One thing everyone can do to send a message to Mrs. Gillibrand, Mayor Sacks, Supervisor Sausville, Councilwoman-elect Thomas Councilman-elect Klotz and the rest of the Malta Town Board is for a majority of the residents of Malta to vote NO on the Community Center proposal and vote to vote NO on the Service Award Program on December 11 and December 13, 2007. As Speaker of the House Tip O' Neil used to say, "All politics is local", the defeat of these proposals is a step toward reducing the property tax burden on upstaters. Only when politicians are defeated or their favorite projects are rejected by the voters will things change. As Mrs. Gillibrand said in the opening line of her E Newsletter "...Property taxes are sky-rocketing for upstate New York homeowners..."
Thank you.

"And it is no less true, that personal security and private property rest entirely upon the wisdom, the stability, and the integrity of the courts of justice." --Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution (1833)