The Legislature voted (12 to 2; 1 Legislator was absent) to endorse Assembly bills A6575, A6576, 10583, and Senate bills S3459 and S7090 which aim to address the growing health insurance crisis in New York State.  The pending New York State Fair Share bills would require that employers with more than 100 employees statewide pay at least $3 per hour for each worker to cover health care costs.  Employers that pay for health insurance valued at $3 or more per hour for each worker would be exempt from the legislation.  The Fair Share bill highlights the fact that “nearly 80 percent of New York’s uninsured are working people and their dependents, [while] employees of large companies are one of the fastest growing groups of New York’s uninsured.”

The Tompkins County endorsement resolution also supports a statewide single-payer system and a commission to study how such a system can be implemented.  The resolution states that Fair Share is “a partial, short-term solution to the health insurance crisis, and as a first step toward better, and still prospective, nationwide, single-payer health care system.”

The Legislature voted (13 to 1; 1 Legislator was absent) to adopt a 20-Year Capital Plan. The goal of the plan is to guide the Legislature in making decisions regarding the community infrastructure needed to support the operations and responsibilities of Tompkins County government with a consistent and manageable level of public investment.  The plan provides information from which the Legislature can determine the appropriate level of capital investment and make those investments in a manner that best utilizes, and conserves prior investments of, taxpayer dollars.

The 20-Year Capital Plan is a work in progress and will be reviewed annually and updated periodically to reflect changing conditions or new information.

LEGISLATURE APPROVES TC3 BUDGET
The Legislature voted (13 to 1; 1 Legislator was absent) to increase its support to Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3) by 5%.  The County will pay an additional $108,839, increasing its total support of the $27.7 million 2006-2007 TC3 operating budget to $2,285,624.  Tompkins and Cortland counties divide the local sponsor cost according to the number of students from each county who attend.  The Cortland County local sponsor cost in the 2006-2007 operating budget totals $1,461,301.

The Legislature voted (10 to 4; 1 Legislator was absent) to endorse State Legislation S6542- A and A9740-A, an act to amend the Tax Law, in relation to imposing a Tompkins County Real Estate Transfer Tax.  This action of the Tompkins County Legislature follows the spirit of Resolution 141 of 2005.  Resolution 141 requested that the State Legislature allow Tompkins County to impose a County Transfer Tax.  Currently, the New York State Transfer Tax is $4 per $1,000 of recorded property sales.

Passage of State Legislation S6542-A and A9740-A will enable the Tompkins County Legislature to impose a County Transfer Tax of up to $2 per $1,000 of recorded property sales.  If imposed at the $2 level, the tax is estimated to produce roughly $550,000 annually. The revenue would be applied to "physical, transit, and educational infrastructure," a purposely general phrase that could include, for example, allocations for roads and bridges, Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit (TCAT), or Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3).

It is important to note that transfer taxes are paid by sellers of real property, not buyers.

Contact:  Tompkins County Administration, 607-274-5551

In recognition of his service as a volunteer member of the Newfield Fire Company, the Legislature honored Mathew Watros Jr. with the Distinguished Youth Award.  Kevin Wall, Chief of the Newfield Fire Company said, “Mathew is a valuable member of the Newfield Fire Company and has the utmost respect from his peers as well as myself.”

In addition to his work with the Newfield Fire Company, Mathew is a National Honor Society recipient and has received several additional scholastic awards.   He has recently signed up for the United States Marine Corp. and will be activated upon the completion of his senior year in high school.

Sponsors of the Tompkins County Distinguished Youth Award are Purity Ice Cream, Cayuga Radio Group, A& B Engraving, and Bangs Ambulance.

The Legislature unanimously approved a Tourism Capital Grant to fund a detailed structural evaluation of the Eight Square Schoolhouse in the Town of Dryden for an amount not to exceed $10,000.  The schoolhouse is the last remaining brick masonry example of octagonal schoolhouse construction in New York State.  Built in 1827, the Eight Square Schoolhouse is on the National Register of Historic Places and is owned by The History Center of Tompkins County.  At present, the schoolhouse is used for a 4^th grade Living History Program and an annual public event; upon restoration, more events are planned to showcase the structure for citizens and tourists. 

Background

The Tourism Grants are funded entirely from the Tompkins County Room Occupancy Tax. When visitors stay in hotels or bed and breakfasts located within the County, they pay a room tax.  The tax is collected from innkeepers and used to fund the Tompkins County Tourism Grants program.  Tourism grants are designed to generate more room tax dollars, align with the strategic tourism plan, and offer visitors experiences worth revisiting.

For more information on the Tourism Grants program, please visit http://www.tompkins- co.org/ctyadmin/tourism/.

Contact:  Tompkins County Administration, 607-274-5551

By unanimous vote, the Legislature passed a resolution in appreciation of the selfless acts of Joseph and Karen Philip, Brian Meyers, and Emergency Responders, who provided assistance to Elsie and Tom Todd following an automobile accident.  Without the actions of Joseph and Karen Philip, Brian Meyers, and Emergency Responders, the consequences of the accident would have been tragic.

On the morning of May 20, 2006, longtime resident and former Tompkins County Legislator Tom Todd, and his wife, Elsie, were injured in a serious motor vehicle accident near King Ferry, New York.  Their car left New York State Rt. 90, overturned, and began to burn. 

Joseph and Karen Philip, residents of the King Ferry area, were traveling by the scene and realized the gravity of the situation.  Mrs. Philip called 911 on a cellular phone, while Mr. Philip ran to the car, assisted Tom as he crawled from the vehicle, and then entered the overturned car to pull Elsie to safety, moments before the car was fully engulfed in flames. The Philips, assisted by another passerby, Brian Meyers of Union Springs, New York, carefully moved the Todds to a safer area and tended to their injuries until the prompt arrival of emergency responders.

The emergency responders included volunteer members from the King Ferry and Aurora Fire Departments, emergency medical personnel from Southern Cayuga Ambulance, Rural Metro (Auburn) and Mercy Flight Central (Helicopter Service), as well as law enforcement agencies, including the Cayuga County Sheriff's Office and New York State Police.

Tom and Elsie are reported to be "on the mend," and the Tompkins County Legislature wishes them a speedy recovery.

Contact:  Tompkins County Legislature, 607-274-5434