Highlights of the August 1, 2006 Tompkins County Legislature Meeting

The Legislature listened to public comment concerning a proposed local law which would authorize a County tax on real estate transfers, charged to the sellers of real property. Lawmakers, however, were forced to delay their vote on the issue, since state legislation enabling the local tax has not yet been signed by the Governor. With Governor’s action anticipated within days, the Legislature now expects to vote at its next meeting on August 15, but the postponement means the new local law, if adopted, would take effect one month later than originally planned, on November 1, 2006. Sellers of real property currently pay a New York State transfer tax of $4 per $1,000 of recorded real estate transfers, with all revenue going to the state. The additional $2-per-thousand local tax, if approved, is projected to generate $500,000 to $600,000 in additional county revenue each year to support infrastructure needs.

At the hearing, Ithaca Board of Realtors president Richard Patterson and Chris Vann of the New York State Association of Realtors spoke out against the proposed tax, predicting it would discourage home ownership and harm the local economy.

By a vote of 9 to 5 (1 Legislator was absent), the Legislature endorsed for another five years extension of the City of Ithaca Density Incentive Program administered by the Tompkins County Industrial Development Agency. Since 2001, the system has provided tax incentives to businesses to encourage development in Ithaca’s central core. At the beginning of the meeting, former Legislator and IDA member Michael Lane urged the Legislature to let the program lapse because he contends it is no longer needed. Much of the discussion before the vote focused on the effects on competition and whether such incentives provide new projects receiving them an unfair advantage. But supporters maintain the program is consistent with provisions of the County’s Comprehensive Plan and provides meaningful support for development in urban areas.

Contact: Martha Robertson, Chair, Planning, Development, and Environmental Quality Committee, 272-0584

By unanimous consent, with one Legislator absent, the Legislature formalized the Rural Small Business Loan Program as an ongoing activity of the Tompkins County Economic Development Revolving Loan Fund. Operating as a pilot program for the past two years, the program uses United States Department of Housing and Urban Development Small Cities Community Development Block Grant funds to provide low-interest loans of up to $25,000 to small entrepreneurs, located in rural areas, which might be unable to obtain traditional bank financing. Supporters note that the program not only benefits individual recipients, but also enhances the quality of life in the County’s rural areas and benefits the local economy. The Legislature also awarded a Rural Small Business Loan to entrepreneur Jeff Marianni of Three Swallows Farm in Danby.

Contacts: Martha Robertson, Chair, Planning, Development, and Environmental Quality Committee, 272-0584, Planning and Public Works Commissioner Ed Marx, 274-5560.