MAYOR RICHARDS WANTS EVERYONE TO KNOW MAGGIE BROOKS IS RAISING TAXES

Rochester/Monroe County, NY-- Mayor Tom Richards recently issued a press release addressing what he calls "unannounced charges to city taxpayers" in the Monroe County Budget proposal. The charges, he says in the press release, include a doubling of the amount that Rochester pays to house city prisoners awaiting arraignment in the county jail, he says, and a charge for maintaining traffic control devices — which the county has done since 1971.

"Together, these charges would negatively impact the city’s 2014-15 budget and subsequent budgets by $2.5 million annually," Richards says in the press release. "When factoring in the mandated payment the city must give to its schools, the county plan would result in a 5.2 percent tax increase on city residents and businesses. While I understand the stated goal of the county budget is to not raise county taxes, this plan would do just that as city residents and businesses are also county residents and businesses.

"Furthermore, city residents and businesses not only pay full county taxes, they also pay the highest percentage of Monroe County-imposed service charges over and above of their county tax burden," he says.