Opinion: New York families, seniors deserve meaningful property tax relief

A recent letter to the editor highlighted an issue that deserves serious attention: the growing burden of school property taxes on seniors and families across New York.

The letter described a senior citizen living on a fixed income who received a school tax bill of more than $12,000. For someone who has spent decades working, paying taxes and contributing to their community, seeing a growing portion of a fixed retirement income consumed by property taxes can make remaining in New York increasingly difficult.

New York does have programs designed to provide relief, including Enhanced STAR for eligible senior homeowners. But we should not fool ourselves into thinking exemptions alone solve the underlying problem.

New York needs to address the cost of government and the property tax burden at its source.

That does not mean we should shortchange our schools. Our children deserve quality teachers, safe buildings, strong academic programs and the resources necessary to prepare them for the future. Strong schools are essential to our communities and our economy.

At the same time, every taxpayer deserves to know that their hard-earned money is being spent responsibly.

There must be a balance between providing schools with the resources they need and recognizing the very real financial limitations of the people who pay the bills. A family trying to buy its first home should not feel as though property taxes will make homeownership impossible. A senior living on a fixed income should not have to wonder whether they can afford to remain in the home where they have spent decades.

And when taxes become too high, there are consequences beyond the annual tax bill. People make decisions about where they want to live, where they want to retire and whether they can afford to raise a family. If New York continues to ask residents to pay more without demanding greater efficiency and accountability from government, we risk making our communities less affordable and encouraging more people to leave.

That is why the answer cannot simply be another exemption or asking schools to do more with less.

We need a broader conversation about how we fund education, how efficiently government spends taxpayer dollars and how we can provide meaningful property tax relief while maintaining strong schools.

That means taking a close look at school budgets, identifying efficiencies and making sure taxpayer dollars are directed toward the programs and services that matter most. It also means recognizing that there is a limit to how much we can ask of the people who fund these budgets.

This issue is about more than one tax bill. It is about whether seniors who have spent their lives contributing to their communities can afford to stay in them. It is about whether young families can afford to purchase homes and raise children here. And it is about whether New York can provide strong public services while remaining an affordable place to live.

We should not have to choose between good schools and affordable taxes. We should expect our government to pursue both.

Our schools need the resources necessary to educate the next generation, but taxpayers also need relief from a system that increasingly asks them to carry more of the load. Responsible budgeting, greater accountability and a commitment to controlling the growth of government spending can help us strike that balance.

New York’s seniors, families and working taxpayers deserve nothing less.

Karl Brabenec
Assemblyman, NYS 98th District