The time for platitudes about saving upstate New York is over. It’s time to take action. Governor Cuomo needs to put all the loose talk about acting on science, when he’s really playing politics, behind us. Upstate is dying and the Governors make-believe actions aren’t going to save it.

Candidate Andrew Cuomo said, “We must make New York the jobs capital of the nation and get unemployed New Yorkers back to work….Upstate continues to witness the crumbling of its manufacturing employment base.” Governor Cuomo, to accomplish this, signed a so-called 2% property tax cap, claims to have cut taxes, created Economic Development Councils to grow local businesses and launched a glitzy marketing campaign called New York – Open for Business.

Let’s take a closer look at what the Governor’s done. Is it working? Has it produced anything even close to what natural gas development would do for the Upstate New York economy?

The Governor’s 2% property tax cap didn’t lower our high property taxes; it froze them in place. Congratulations, Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Schuyler, Steuben, Sullivan and Tompkins County residents: you’re already in the top 200 list of highest property tax counties nationwide and now you’re guaranteed to stay there. New York has 18 counties in the most expensive 100. Here is how the Tax Foundation ranks Southern Tier counties (out of 2,922 counties nationwide for which they have the data), bearing in mind the Tax Foundation ranks New York State as the worst state.

http://eidmarcellus.org/marcellus-shale/giving-upstate-the-business...