{"id":48451,"date":"2016-01-31T15:58:57","date_gmt":"2016-01-31T15:58:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/owegopennysaver.com\/?p=48451"},"modified":"2016-01-31T15:58:57","modified_gmt":"2016-01-31T15:58:57","slug":"taxpayers-first-party-announces-candidates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2016\/01\/31\/taxpayers-first-party-announces-candidates\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Taxpayers First\u2019 Party announces candidates"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\u2018Taxpayers<\/a>

Earl Hartman.<\/p><\/div>\n

Four Owego residents recently announced their candidacies for Village offices that will be on the ballot this coming March 15. Current Village Trustee Steve May is running for Mayor, while current officeholders Mike Phelps and Earl Hartman are running for re-election as Trustees, and newcomer Ed Morton is also running for Trustee.<\/p>\n

The four candidates plan to run on the \u201cTaxpayers First\u201d Party line, which is focused on three key priorities: Financial Accuracy and Accountability; Maximizing Efficiency and Effectiveness; and Ensuring That Taxpayers Make Final Decisions on Major Issues.<\/p>\n

More details about the Taxpayers First platform will be unveiled in the coming weeks. The candidates will also be visiting residents face-to-face by going door-to-door to collect petition signatures, share information and answer questions.<\/p>\n

\"\u2018Taxpayers<\/a>

Steve May.<\/p><\/div>\n

Steve May was first elected to the Village Board in 2014. He\u2019s running for Mayor this year with a keen focus on improving financial and public accountability after a career spent building businesses in the private sector. He currently owns and operates Owego and Harford Railway and 10 other local companies. He has served as a Board Member for the Tioga County Boys and Girls Club, as a volunteer for the Special Olympics, and as a supporter of Stray Haven, Camp Ahwaga, Tioga Opportunities, Apalachin Youth Football, Tioga Youth Soccer, and many more local organizations. He lives on Montrose Turnpike with his wife, Cheryl.<\/p>\n

As a Trustee, May has worked to amend Owego Fire Department Operation Manual to remedy PESH violations, wrote the Corrective Action Plan in response to a negative State Audit, pushed for a law to protect children against sexual predators, and assisted in crafting Nuisance Property Law to improve our neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

\"\u2018Taxpayers<\/a>

Ed Morton.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve made good progress trying to turn Owego around in the last two years,\u201d said May. \u201cBut we need new leadership at the top in the Mayor\u2019s Office to get our finances back on track and to bring real accountability to the taxpayers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Incumbent Trustee Mike Phelps is running for re-election after first being elected in 2014. He is a third generation resident of Owego and graduate of Owego Free Academy. He is a graduate of Elmira College with a Bachelor\u2019s Degree in Criminal Justice Administration and serves as a member of the Vestal Police Department. He previously served as a volunteer coach for Owego Little League, Youth Basketball, and Apalachin Youth Football. He and his wife, Terra (Seaver), live on Talcott Street in Owego with their four children.<\/p>\n

“Unfortunately the tax rate of nearly $20 per $1,000 on property assessments\u00a0has the few taxpayers left in the Village of Owego struggling to reside or\u00a0operate business here,\u201d said Phelps.\u00a0\u201cThe New York State Tax Cap restrictions imposed on\u00a0the Village cripple our ability to generate more\u00a0tax revenue to invest\u00a0in improving our\u00a0public services. In order continue to make the Village of\u00a0Owego a safe and desirable place to live and operate business, we must find\u00a0ways to get the most out of every tax dollar.”<\/p>\n

\"\u2018Taxpayers<\/a>

Mike Phelps.<\/p><\/div>\n

Incumbent Trustee Earl Hartman is also running for re-election. Earl was appointed in 2010 by former Mayor Arrington to fill\u00a0a\u00a0vacated seat and has diligently served the Village taxpayers for two subsequent terms as an elected Trustee.\u00a0He was born and raised in Owego and is retired from Cornell after 42 years in Civil\u00a0Engineering\u00a0Project Design and Management\u00a0and\u00a0as their\u00a0NYS Code Official. He is a past Volunteer Youth Sports Coach, Scout Master, Sunday School Teacher and Board Member of Friends of Hospice. He currently serves as an EMT with\u00a0Village\u00a0of Owego\u00a0Emergency Squad\u00a0and is very active in his Church.\u00a0Earl\u2019s wife Judy (Baker) also grew up in the Village and they have\u00a0four children and seven grandchildren.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m proud of\u00a0my\u00a0work on the Village Board,\u00a0and especially with the Taxpayers First Team, over the last two years. We\u00a0strive to\u00a0listen to and\u00a0represent all of our constituents\u2019 voices, not just the shrill or strident ones,\u201d said Hartman. \u201cI would be honored to earn the support of Village voters to continue the important work of this office for another term.\u201d<\/p>\n

James Edmond (\u201cEd\u201d) Morton is a first-time candidate for public office but is an eighth generation Owego resident. He was born and raised in Owego, is a graduate of Owego Free Academy, and holds a Bachelor\u2019s of Science Degree in Applied Economics from Cornell\u2019s Dyson School of Management. He currently serves as Senior Vice President at Chemung Canal Trust and is the Treasurer and a Board Member of A New Hope Center. He is a member of Owego United Methodist Church and served as a past Volunteer Coach for Owego Junior Football. He and his wife, Kari, live with their four children on Front Street in Owego.<\/p>\n

\u201cKari and I moved back home to Owego when we had opportunities to go many other places because we love this community,\u201d said Morton. \u201cI\u2019m running for Trustee to bring my financial background to the Board so we can set out a long-term path to stability and success.\u201d<\/p>\n

May, Phelps, Hartman and Morton encourage Village residents to contact them with any questions or comments leading up to the March 15 election.<\/p>\n

All Village residents are eligible to vote in the March 15 election if they are registered with the Tioga County Board of Elections.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Four Owego residents recently announced their candidacies for Village offices that will be on the ballot this coming March 15. Current Village Trustee Steve May…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n\u2018Taxpayers First\u2019 Party announces candidates - Owego Pennysaver Press<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2016\/01\/31\/taxpayers-first-party-announces-candidates\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018Taxpayers First\u2019 Party announces candidates - Owego Pennysaver Press\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Four Owego residents recently announced their candidacies for Village offices that will be on the ballot this coming March 15. 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