POLITICS: Why the secrecy about Brooks' budget plan?
By Mary Anna Towler on Sep. 27th, 2007 at 9:12am 4 Comments
There's no excuse for the Brooks' administration's secrecy and ramrodding.
Yes, we've all known that Brooks wanted to buy into the state's "intercept" plan. But until 5 o'clock yesterday, 
she hadn't said how she would do that and continue to share the sales tax with the city, towns, and villages. Nor had there been a hint that the county would start charging municipalities the costs of their Monroe Community College students - something that deserves a full, thoughtful airing.
Announcing a far-reaching plan at 5 and scheduling a 6 o'clock meeting to vote on it? That's not democracy. Nor is holding a meeting in Republican headquarters to explain the plan and inviting only Republican town supervisors.
Brooks didn't have to do it this way. And no town supervisor should have gone along with it.
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Tom Janowski on September 28th, 2007
Good plans don't need to be hidden and then quickly voted on. Good plans will stand the test of time before and after they are enacted.
Certainly, Maggie and the Republicans were expecting trouble. I've been to packed, standing room only county legislature meetings with very few security guards present. One Wednesday night, with very few people in attendance, there were many security guards present.
And at the end of the meeting, Maggie had to make a mad dash to the elevator....she can run but she can't hide!
john from on September 29th, 2007
typical neocon BS.
Andy on October 10th, 2007
It amounts to a tax increase, and the Majority party wanted to shift responsibility. Here's how it probably came off:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAR_5M0nEXA
Minarik's behind it, but it's the mechanics of NYS government overlap that allows it to happen.
icecucumber73 on October 21st, 2007
Maggie's TV ads just keep coming. In her latest ad, she states that she needs to set the record straight--and then she lies.
How can Maggie say the budget problem was solved locally when even she admits that she was able to do what she did because of increased state aid to schools. That is not a local solution. And when she says the schools still end up with more money even after the county's 50% cut to schools-well that is another lie. The state aid came with strings attached. That increased state money has to be spend on specific programs. The county's 50% cut will come out of the rest of the budget and that is going to hurt the schools financially.
And in setting the record straight, why isn't Maggie mentioning the new fee to support MCC? Why isn't she mentioning the increased fees that the DMV?
This got me to wondering...can Maggie be sued for lying?
Maggie disgusts me.