It was written by Croton resident and Chairman
of the Croton Central Veteran's Committee Patrick Calcutti, and appeared in a May 2014 issue of The Gazette shortly before the recent school board election.
Everything Croton apologizes for the delay in getting it online. See below.
To The Editor:
In February, as Chairman of the Croton Central Veterans’ Committee, I wrote to the Croton-Harmon board of Education. I asked them to give consideration to a tax break for veterans, according to a new state law. The law provides for tax breaks for veterans, but must be enacted buy the individual school districts throughout the state.
As of this date I have not been accorded the courtesy of a reply.
I did however, see a rerun of a board meeting recently. The meeting showed the board discussing the proposal. They did so in what I thought was a most flippant and disrespectful manner. Several board members were laughing about the proposal and one stated: “ this is an area where Croton should not be a leader.”
I was astonished to see such an attitude from members of the board, that are elected to represent the taxpayers of this community. I can understand if they have a problem with the cost of the measure. However they didn’t even make an inquiry to the Town or Village to see what kind of impact it would have on the taxes. I really thought that the board would study the matter before deciding to just "sit it out".
According to my inquiries to the Village office, there are approximately 230 households that receive some sort of veterans exemption. This should not represent a drastic impact on the tax base; however, a more in depth study should certainly be made before a decision can be reached.
As we vote for new school board members, I would hope that my fellow veterans, and taxpayers, would ask that each candidate, do some research and get an informed opinion, on this matter, before they are accorded the privilege of serving on the school board.
Patrick E. Calcutti, Chairman Croton Central Veterans’ Committee
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Everything Croton apologizes for the delay in getting it online. See below.
To The Editor:
In February, as Chairman of the Croton Central Veterans’ Committee, I wrote to the Croton-Harmon board of Education. I asked them to give consideration to a tax break for veterans, according to a new state law. The law provides for tax breaks for veterans, but must be enacted buy the individual school districts throughout the state.
As of this date I have not been accorded the courtesy of a reply.
I did however, see a rerun of a board meeting recently. The meeting showed the board discussing the proposal. They did so in what I thought was a most flippant and disrespectful manner. Several board members were laughing about the proposal and one stated: “ this is an area where Croton should not be a leader.”
I was astonished to see such an attitude from members of the board, that are elected to represent the taxpayers of this community. I can understand if they have a problem with the cost of the measure. However they didn’t even make an inquiry to the Town or Village to see what kind of impact it would have on the taxes. I really thought that the board would study the matter before deciding to just "sit it out".
According to my inquiries to the Village office, there are approximately 230 households that receive some sort of veterans exemption. This should not represent a drastic impact on the tax base; however, a more in depth study should certainly be made before a decision can be reached.
As we vote for new school board members, I would hope that my fellow veterans, and taxpayers, would ask that each candidate, do some research and get an informed opinion, on this matter, before they are accorded the privilege of serving on the school board.
Patrick E. Calcutti, Chairman Croton Central Veterans’ Committee
YOU MAY ALSO HAVE AN INTEREST IN
--Croton's Vets: The Vietnam Years, courtesy of The Croton Historical Society
SEE PART 1 HERE http://www.everythingcroton.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-vietnam-years-croton-vets-part-1.html
SEE PART 2 HERE http://everythingcroton.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-vietnam-years-crotons-vets-part-2.html
SEE PART 3 HERE http://everythingcroton.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-vietnam-years-crotons-vets-part-3.html
SEE PART 4 HERE http://everythingcroton.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-vietnam-years-crotons-vets-part-4.html
--ERIN LIVINGSTON, REMEMBERING CROTON'S VETERANS http://www.crotononhudson-ny.gov/Public_Documents/CrotonHudsonNY_WebDocs/HistoricalSociety/crotonsveterans
I served in the Navy long enough to qualify for a "Peace-Time Veterans" tax exemption because I never saw combat. A fellow classmate, Col. Donald Cook, received the Medal of Honor for heroism in a Vietnamese POW camp. I've always had a feeling of guilt to receive this tax exemption knowing that a close classmate died for all of us. As a result, I donate my tax savings to military charities like the USO and Wounded Warriors. I agree with Pat Calcutti. We can't do enough for our vets especially now that the Middle east is flaring up again and the VA mistreatment of wounded vets has been exposed,
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DeleteUPDATED: EXEMPTION HAS BEEN GRANTED
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