Clarification on shared services

Dear Editor,

The Town of Newark Valley was recently the subject of a letter to Governor Cuomo sent by Mayor Tornatore and published in the Pennysaver. There are some misconceptions presented that I would like to clarify. 

The Town of Newark Valley does believe in shared services. This goes back to the late seventies when I first went to work at the Highway Department. 

As Supervisor and Town Representative to the Council of Governments, I was actively involved in the creation of the County Wide Shared Services Agreement we all use. The Town has additional agreements with the Newark Valley Central School District regarding purchases of salt and fuel. 

The Town of Newark Valley has never developed a budget that charged Town residents who live in the village a higher tax rate than Town residents. One year there was some type of anomaly at the County Office of Real Property when tax bills were computed. The Town did not receive any additional moneys because of it. 

The Mayor’s proposal for the Town to plow village streets is not exactly a shared service proposal. He proposed that the Town Highway Department perform these services with the total cost coming out of the Town budget. It is true that Town residents who live on the five miles of village streets receive no direct highway services from their town tax bill. The other town residents who live on the nearly eight miles of state roads and seven to eight miles of county roads don’t receive direct benefits either. 

A recent state audit did point out a lack of written records documenting highway operations. The Highway Superintendent, who is an elected official and not under the control of the Town Board, is working to correct this issue. The Town Board does and always has reviewed any highway agreements and every bill generated. 

I personally believe every Town of Newark Valley taxpayer, regardless of their address, is receiving good value for their town taxes. We have a dedicated team of full and part time employees. We serve 4,871 residents and maintain 65 miles of roads with only six full time employees receiving benefits. 

We continually update our equipment and maintain and improve our buildings and roads. The various Town Boards I have worked with over the last 17 years have worked diligently to keep the overall tax rates as low as possible. 

If anyone would like to know more about how or why the two tax rates vary and go up or down, please call or stop by my office and I will gladly explain it to the best of my ability.

Sincerely,

Stuart Yetter, Jr.

Town of Newark Valley Supervisor