October 10, 2006
updated December 8, 2006

WEITZMAN: NASSAU HOMEOWNERS
SHORTCHANGED ON NYS “STAR” TAX REBATES

Nassau Rebate Checks are $64 Million Less Than Westchester’s

A report issued today by Comptroller Howard Weitzman reveals a $64 million disparity in the size of New York State STAR rebate checks distributed to homeowners in Nassau and Westchester counties with similarly-valued properties and school tax bills. Nassau residents are receiving significantly lower rebates in almost every case.

At a Mineola press conference with Henry L. Grishman, superintendent of Jericho Public Schools, and Dr. Arnold Dodge, superintendent of East Rockaway Public Schools, Comptroller Weitzman said, “The inequitable distribution of the STAR rebates is outrageous. The state school aid formulas and the STAR calculations make no sense.”

“In total, our analysis shows that Nassau taxpayers were shortchanged by $64 million,” Comptroller Weitzman said. The report shows that the average basic STAR rebate check in Nassau is $240.75. By contrast, the average in Westchester is $386.75. In many of the communities compared in the two counties, the difference in checks is frequently $200 or more.

“Looking at the STAR rebate checks arriving in our mailboxes,” he continued, “it would be logical to think that owners of comparably valued homes, or who pay similar amounts of school tax, should receive rebate checks that are roughly equivalent. However, in almost every instance, Nassau homeowners received much lower STAR rebates than their neighbors in Westchester.

In one egregious example, that of Manhasset, residents will get a check that is fully 144 percent lower than the rebate paid to their counterparts in the Westchester community of North Salem. In Manhasset, residents can expect a $153 rebate. In North Salem, homeowners will receive $373.77. Average school and library taxes in the two towns are almost identical.” The rebates are even more unfair for low income seniors who are eligible for Enhanced STAR. In Manhasset, those seniors will receive $255. In North Salem, those seniors will receive $624.20.

In a ranking of all the school districts by the amount of the rebate checks, only three of the 30 districts with the highest STAR rebates are located in Nassau, and only one of the 30 communities with the lowest rebates is in Westchester. Westchester was selected for comparison because it is an affluent, mature suburban county similar to Nassau in size, residential makeup and property values.

Weitzman and the superintendents called for a revision of current formulas that determine the distribution of state aid to school districts and an overhaul of New York State’s school aid and Tax Relief (STAR) rebate program.

Jericho Public Schools Superintendent Henry L. Grishman said, “Nassau’s communities and school districts have struggled with less than their fair share of state aid for far too long. I commend Comptroller Weitzman for shedding light on the inequities of the state aid system.”

Great Neck Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Ronald L. Friedman said, “A clear inequity exists between Westchester and Nassau, with Nassau districts being significantly shortchanged. Nassau taxpayers in districts of comparable wealth to Westchester districts are getting the short end of the state aid stick when it comes to STAR relief. The data is surprising, even shocking.”

“We are not calling for lower rebates for Westchester homeowners,” Comptroller Weitzman said, “but for a fairer distribution of education aid throughout the state. Nassau County residents carry the burden of more of their school district’s budgets, receive less STAR assistance than comparable Westchester County, and now will receive a much lower STAR rebate check because of the unfairness of the STAR rebate formula to Nassau County residents….Our taxpayers need a school aid formula that is transparent and that meets the test of common sense.”

“The unfairness in this year’s STAR rebates simply follows the unfairness in the overall STAR formula,” Comptroller Weitzman said. A comparison of Basic STAR savings for the 2006-2007 school year shows that Westchester residents received an average $1,840 STAR exemption and Nassau residents received $1,020, an 80 percent difference. This is a regional issue. Suffolk residents received even lower STAR exemptions, $990 on average, than Nassau residents.

Comptroller Weitzman first examined the unfairness of the state education aid formulas in a December 2004 report to state lawmakers entitled, “School Taxes and State Aid in Nassau.” That study found that Nassau, which leads the state with the highest school tax bills, also receives the least amount of aid in New York —16.6 percent vs. the statewide average of 37.4 percent (2002 figures). The Comptroller called for a revamping of existing aid formulas to take into consideration residents’ income levels, saying “any future changes in the formulas should not be weighted heavily on property values, and must consider ability to pay.”

The Comptroller’s letter to Albany, as well as additional information on the school tax issue can be found on the Comptroller’s Web site at: http://www.nassaucountyny.gov/agencies/comptroller/index.html.

Click here to read the STAR Rebate Report - (.pdf format)

Click Here to Compare your STAR Rebate to Communities in Westchester - (.pdf format)