Suffolk won't add Fire I. ferry surcharge
Suffolk County has abandoned a controversial proposal to levy Fire Island ferry riders with a 25-cent surcharge on their tickets.
The revenue-raising measure was floated last month by County Executive Steve Bellone as part of a raft of measures to help the county address a $530-million budget gap.
The idea prompted howls of opposition from Fire Island residents and several private ferry operators, some of whom questioned the county's legal authority to institute what amounted to a selective tax, with the purpose of collecting revenue for the county's general fund.
County spokeswoman Vanessa Baird-Streeter said that after consideration, the county would not be proceeding with the fee. "We have heard the concerns raised and will not implement a .25 surcharge on Fire Island Ferry," Baird-Streeter wrote in an email. The fee would have raised about $750,000.
The county licenses all ferries and sets the rates for travel, but the proposal was aimed only at the companies that service Fire Island, not those that serve Port Jefferson, Orient Point or Shelter Island.
Tuesday, Fire Island Ferries president Tim Mooney, who last month said ferry operators would sue the county if the proposal wasn't abandoned, said legal advice he received had shown the county could only institute a tax with the state's permission.
"That was the problem when the county tried it in the 1990s. I'm glad the county came to its senses and didn't rely on the private sector to be a public tax collector," Mooney said.
Fire Island Association president Suzy Goldhirsch said residents recognize the county must make some difficult decisions to balance the budget. "In our opinion, however, a surcharge of ferry trips to Fire Island is neither a feasible nor equitable revenue-producing strategy."Association vice president John Lund noted the surcharge would have levied just the ferries while not imposing any similar fee on private boats or people traveling to the state or county parks on Fire Island.
"Bottom line, it was unfair -- it'd be like charging blondes traveling to Fire Island an extra dollar," he said. "I'm not sure that would fly either."
