Editorial: Rockland doesn't need higher sales tax

There's good reason why a push by Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef and the Board of Legislators to raise the sales tax .375 percent to 8.75 percent isn't going anywhere in Albany. It's a short-term gimmick that doesn't come close to addressing the county's fiscal mess.

Local leaders have already made some difficult decisions, like a 30 percent property tax hike. But now they must make some tougher calls on programs, layoffs and possibly shedding the county's involvement with the financially struggling Summit Park Hospital and Nursing Care Center. The time has passed when elected officials can punt difficult decisions with end-around tax hikes.

Rockland's sales-tax proposal, which needs state approval, would only raise about $14 million for the county -- far short of a projected $80-million deficit. The plan, first backed by the Board of Legislators and later by Vanderhoef as part of an overall deal, was to increase the sales tax -- as well as mortgage and property transfer taxes -- and borrow millions to balance the county's roughly $700-million budget.

The strategy was to pay off the loan with the increased revenues and offset massive layoffs. The state bill would have also required the state comptroller to review county spending.

The county's delegation in the State Legislature -- notably Sen. David Carlucci (D-Clarkstown) and Assemb. Kenneth Zebrowski (D-New City) -- won't back any so-called home rule legislation to raise the sales tax because it's a short-term fix with no guarantees. They are right.

Albany lawmakers, appropriately, have little appetite for tax increases at the moment. But that doesn't relieve them of their responsibility to work on mandate relief. Most of Rockland's $80-million property tax is gobbled up by Medicaid spending.

But that's another battle for another day. This one must be waged in Rockland.