Monroe County has yet another sales tax complication on its hands
This one over gasoline.
The State Legislature has approved capping the sales tax on fuel as an answer to the gripe by motorists about higher gas costs. Gov. George Pataki sounded like he was ready to support it.
The state proposal also allows counties to cap the amount collected in sales tax on gas. The problem is…can counties afford it? The answers are all over the map.
Medicaid dominates the minds of county leaders. Is it too much?
This audio Notebook gets at it.
Also discussed – the perplexing idea that people who pay property taxes to schools might avoid voting on the budgets that would increase those very taxes.
Medicaid, Medicaid, Medicaid.
How the cost of this program plays on the minds of local government leaders as they try to make ends meet.
You can’t turn around without seeing some county legislator or executive lament how the local share of this vastly growing social service program beats down their budget.
Look at Monroe County. You’ve seen the stories about how county leaders want to deal with a gap in the budget. Republicans want a sales tax increase. Democrats want to charge towns that use the sheriff’s department directly for the service. Behind it all – Medicaid.
And, boy, if the county doesn’t remind you about it – over and over again. That bad state government, says the county leader. They push that Medicaid cost on the counties and won’t control the spending. Albany allows that runaway freight train to run right over us.
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