Senator Brian Benjamin – Stop Playing Politics on Property Tax Reform
Senator Brian Benjamin doesn’t know we are watching him in Brooklyn.
Benjamin represents Harlem, but has been speaking on NY property taxes because he is the Budgeting and Revenue Chairman in the NY Senate.
On October 16th, Senator Benjamin announced that the NY Senate was waiting for Mayor de Blasio to change the property tax system. (See video here) Senator Gournardes is broken and just followed Benjamin’s lead (if you watch the video, you will see Gounardes gets flustered by the woman who is asking questions and ends the meeting (a la Dan Donovan style). When Gounardes saw the Property Tax Commission fall apart and do nothing after people waited for 18 months, he should have stepped in. But he was silent and did nothing!
Last week, the NY Senate met. Benjamin proposed that the Senate hear from the people (See here). Brian Benjamin must be the most out-of-touch politician out there because NYC Council’s Property Tax Commission. Guess what Brian Benjamin? No home owner wants to pay more in property taxes.
Most NY’ers can’t understand why anyone with an ounce of common sense would let this continue in NYC. The Mayor of NYC pays less than half the property tax of other residents. He pays less property tax on his two homes in Park Slope than a resident in Bay Ridge and his area has more amenities (mainly a working train system)
Sadly, Brian Benjamin attended Brown University and Harvard Business School and he has no solutions to reform the uneven property taxes in NYC.
Brian Benjamin has been a senator for two years. He needs to MOVE and GET OUT OF THE WAY so real champions of change can step. Benjamin should immediately step down from the Budgeting and Revenue Chairman because he is just playing politics and running nonsense meetings to waste time. Benjamin should have initiated reform by now, but is sitting on his hands because that is how he has seen many before him do it.
You would think Brian Benjamin would have made a move on property taxes as he intends to run against Brad Lander for NYC Comptroller. (See here) Lander lives in Park Slope and has been enjoying the property tax break for years:
Hugs,
marlene
Topics: Bay Ridge | No Comments »