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(2) The history of the property tax reform initiative in Ticonderoga

Please note that our "history" portion here refers primarily to local Ticonderoga initiatives to reform property taxes in New York State. If you would prefer, you can click here to go directly to (11) Property Tax Reform Initiatives in the NY State Legislature. Also - you may want to click here to check under (10) Recent Events, where we have an "old news" section toward the bottom.

We are proud of the Ticonderoga initiatives to reform state property taxes. To see our (12) Editorial Comments and Analysis, click here.

The history of the property tax reform initiative in Ticonderoga

In early May 2005, a small group of Ticonderoga residents prepared a petition for Ticonderoga property taxpayers to sign. The petition called for urgently needed property tax reforms (for a blank copy of the petition, click here.) At that time, the Ticonderoga Town Board had already received numerous complaints from property owners concerning property taxes.

At their May 12, 2005 town board meeting, the Ticonderoga Town Board members unanimously signed a letter encouraging Ticonderoga property taxpayers to consider signing the petition. (for a copy of the letter, click here.)

The letter from the Ti board and the petition were sent to all homes in Ticonderoga and Hague as an insert in the Memorial Day Weekend Times of Ti newspaper. Over 450 signed petitions were received.

On October 13, 2005, the Ticonderoga Town Board unanimously signed a resolution and petition to the governor and state legislature demanding property tax reform. For a copy of their petition, click here. Their ringing condemnation of the property tax system and demand for reform should serve as an example for other NY state towns.

On  March 9, 2006, the Ticonderoga Town Board unanimously endorsed Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward's proposed legislation, A9458. To see their resolution, click here. To see Assemblywoman Sayward's A9458, click here.

Subsequently, in Spring 2006, Senator Betty Little and Assemblywomen Sandy Galef and Teresa Sayward sponsored twin (identical) legislation in the Senate and the Assembly. To see a copy of these twin legislative proposals, S5982B and A11551, click here.

A briefing was held by www.EyeOnTi.com staff for the Ticonderoga Town board to acquaint them with the differences between A9458 and S5982B/A11551. If you would like to read an analysis of the legislation with editorial comments, click here.

Also, in the Spring 2006, Ticonderoga did NOT increase property assessments on most all Ticonderoga properties. (Unlike 2005, virtually no complaints were received by town officials from the Ticonderoga public about assessments.) The decision not to raise assessments was consistent with the committment made by the Ticonderoga Town Board in its unanimous resolution passed on October 13, 2005, in which they stated:

"... pending the enactment of legislation at the state level, the Ticonderoga Town Board does hereby announce that it will NOT renew the present agreement with New York State , known as the “Six-Year Maintenance Plan”, for the year 2006. In most cases, for current Ticonderoga homeowners, this will probably result in no increase in assessments next year. We will consider a revaluation when or if new conditions warrant." [To read the entire October 13, 2005 resolution, click here.]

On August 22, 2006, the Plattsburgh Press Republican newspaper published an article "Assessments at Issue in Ti" which raised the question of whether Ticonderoga assessments should have been increased in 2006 (and, by extension, whether they should be increased next year.)

On August 23, 2006, your www.EyeOnTi.com staff sent a letter to the Plattsburgh Press Republican explaining why raising assessments was NOT a good idea, and defending the Ticonderoga Town Board's decision to not raise assessments. To see a copy of this letter, click here. [NOTE: As of September 12, 2006, the letter has not been published by the Press Republican.]

On approximately September 1, 2006 most all Ticonderoga property taxpayers were delighted to find that their school property tax bills showed no increase in assessments and, in fact, a slight decrease in the dollar amount of their school tax bill from the previous year

In 2007, stability in assessments resulted in stable property tax bills. However, several recent fall 2007 events do not bode well for Ticonderoga property taxpayers. For additional information on recent developments, click here to go to "(10) Breaking news and recent events".

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It is the intent of the www.EyeOnTi.com staff to maintain this page as a chronological history of Ticonderoga's efforts to bring property tax reform to New York State. Your feedback is welcome. To contact us, click here.

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