(Valley Stream, NY) For nearly 10 years Supervisor Kate Murray has misinformed Town of Hempstead residents claiming her administration is fiscally responsible. Open government advocates, and Hempsted Town Supervisor candidate Felix Procacci cites many sources including the 2012 New York state audit of the Hempstead Animal Shelter, which reported gross financial mismanagement.
“I am running for Hempstead Town Supervisor to reform Town Government by making it transparent, accountable, and fiscally responsible. Making government transparent means providing accurate and timely information to the people. This is the first step in putting the power where it belongs, in the hands of the people,” states Procacci
Despite Supervisor Murray’s claims of fiscal responsibility, town budgets show just the opposite.
“During her first nine years in office Supervisor Kate Murray raised property taxes 44.9%. The increases in Town taxes exceeded the rate of inflation by over 50% even while the workforce was being reduced by 6%. During her first nine years in office she approved special district tax increases of over 40%. During her first nine years in office, the Animal Shelter budget doubled, and the State Comptroller’s report showed widespread financial mismanagement,” states Procacci.
To support his statement Procacci created a chart, which shows Supervisors Murray 44.9% tax increase on residents.
“Every election politicians talk about taxes, but they must be honest with the public and Supervisor Murray must be honest about how she raised taxes 44.9%. Elected leaders must provide accurate and timely information to the people and as Town Supervisor Procacci will ensure that residents have the information necessary to make an informed choice,” state Procacci.
The Procacci Promise: By Implementing the following simple steps we will go a long way to insure that Town government is far more open and accountable to its residents. These three ideas can be implemented at no cost to the Hempstead taxpayers.
- Broadcast all Town board meetings online and on public access channels. Town Board meetings are where government does its day-to-day business which includes the expenditure of taxpayer money.
- Put all Town government contracts online (immediately after the contract has been signed) and provide their total budgeted cost over the life of the contract.
- Provide all amended budget items (for the previous year), in the first section of each year’s proposed budget (so resident’s can easily identify all mid-year budget changes).
Felix Procacci “The Open Government Advocate” is the Democratic candidate for Hempstead Town Supervisor. Felix Procacci is a Franklin Square resident who is running to: create a transparent and accountable Town government; get Town Hall meetings online; require Town government to provide residents with the cost of settled employee contracts; post employee contracts online; post all budget data online in a format that allows for searching and sorting; post all Town Board member votes online; and to end to the waste and abuse at Town Hall. Felix Procacci is a computer programmer, community activist, husband, and father of two (Katherine 12 & Kenneth 9). http://www.facebook.com/Felix4Sup
