Letter from David Petri

Why Were We Singled Out?

When Otsego County residents received their property tax bills last week, those observing residents of Hartwick were again in shock. We were told by the county that there would be a 5 percent increase but instead found an increase of 13.1 percent. This aroused my curiosity and even more so when a friend in Oneonta town said his went down .5 percent. I then looked into some other towns, and found increases for Laurens at 5.3 percent, Middlefield at 4.6 percent, Milford at 7.6 percent, Morris at 7.2 percent, Richfield at 7.5 percent, and Otsego at 2.1 percent. This is not anything new for Hartwick residents, as we also got pounded on the Cooperstown school taxes.

Of course, like any responsible citizen this gave me cause and concern to ask questions. I went to Joe in the tax office and did learn that the state has a formula to determine equalization rates which was used for both school and property tax determinations. Do these rates sound equal to you? I also talked to Carol McGovern, clerk of the county board, and Alan Ruffles, county treasurer. Last September when I questioned the school tax, I talked to several county reps about this situation.