Last updated: 5:43 am
July 3, 2008
Posted: 3:39 am
July 3, 2008
Hey, Mayor Mike, hope you noticed that even without rescinding last year's 7 percent cut in the property- tax rate, city homeowners will be pouring more money into city coffers.
As The Post reported Wednesday, the average residential property-tax bill is jumping $171, just from the rising assessments of homes in a city with a generally weakening real-estate market.
Indeed, it's been the City Council - not Mayor Bloomberg - that has shown a consistent respect for New York's hard-working homeowners.
In 2002, when the mayor proposed a property-tax hike - thus immediately breaking his campaign pledge not to raise taxes - he sought to sock homeowners with a 25 percent increase.
The council insisted on nothing higher than 18 percent - which was bad enough.
Then, last year, even while proposing the 7 percent reduction, the mayor made it clear that the cut was only temporary.
Indeed, this spring - when just about every politician in the state was talking about reducing property taxes - Hizzoner suggested that the souring economy was itself sufficient reason to rescind the 7 percent cut.
By the time the budget was actually negotiated last week, it was quite clear that taking back the property-tax cut was on the table.
Fortunately, the cut survived.
That's scant comfort, though, to most city homeowners, who'll still end up getting bigger property-tax bills.
The question is, though: Do the mayor and his City Hall team understand this?
It seems they see fiddling with the property tax as just an abstract budget adjustment to meet a transitory need.
But for homeowners, it's real money - meaning far more tangible "pain" for families than the sort moaned about whenever anyone proposes marginal trims in social-spending programs.
The mayor had best keep that reality in mind - even as he holds onto the option of reopening the budget.
New Yorkers are taxed enough - none more so than hardworking homeowners.
