County Executive Robert P. Astorino’s third live tele-town hall Tuesday night drew more than 23,500 participants, who had the chance to pose questions directly to Astorino about his proposed budget and other concerns.
“The tele-town hall is a way to reach a lot of people without them leaving their homes,” said Astorino. “The format is extremely helpful when discussing a complex subject like the budget, because the questions pinpoint people’s concerns and the explanations can provide more details than a sound byte.”
Astorino noted that the average listener stayed on the line 14 minutes.
On Nov. 15, Astorino released a proposed budget of $1.689 billion. It includes no increase in the county tax levy, maintains essential services and protects the county’s neediest. It also protects the county’s three triple A bond ratings. The budget is now before the Board of Legislators, which has until Dec. 27 to adopt a final spending plan for 2012.
Budget questions dominated the discussion during the tele-town hall. Answers to these questions and others are part of a budget FAQ (frequently asked questions) posted on the county’s Web site at HYPERLINK “http://www.westchestergov.com/budget” www.westchestergov.com/budget .
Here are some of the questions asked (and answered) in the FAQs:
How was the zero increase in the property levy achieved?
What does the proposed zero-increase in the property tax levy mean for taxpayers?
How does Astorino’s proposal affect the safety net for those in need?
What affect does the County Executive’s budget have on the county’s park system?
Participants in the tele-town hall also had the opportunity to respond to three polling questions. Here are the results:
Do you think the county’s unions should contribute toward their healthcare, just like their state counterparts? 87 percent said yes, 9 percent said no and the remainder were unsure.
Do you think it’s important that the county protect its triple A credit rating by not using money from the reserves to balance the budget? 64 percent said yes, 25 percent said no, the remainder were unsure.
What is the most important issue to you and your family concerning the budget? 78 percent said no increase in property taxes, 12 percent said safety net programs for the needy and 10 percent said quality of life services like art and environmental programs.
“This kind of poll, while not scientific, is a great way to get feed back from the public,” said Astorino.