SULLIVAN COUNTY –– Last Thursday, Sullivan County Treasurer Nancy Buck announced that properties delinquent on their 2019 and 2020 taxes can be redeemed by June 30, 2022.

“We had previously extended the redemption date from January 31 to April 30 to accommodate those struggling in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially since our office was closed to the public for a period in 2020,” she explained. “We asked the court to allow us to extend the redemption deadline further to June 30, because a number of property owners told us that they were still waiting to receive NYS Homeowners Assistance Fund payments to cover those taxes.”

“We wanted to be fair and as accommodating as possible. It’s important that we give every opportunity we can to people legitimately struggling to pay their taxes,” Buck added. “But this is a firm deadline. After June 30, properties with taxes delinquent from 2020 or earlier will go straight to the tax auction.”

State law permits owners of properties facing foreclosure to “redeem” their properties – removing them from the foreclosure list – by paying the outstanding taxes and associated penalties.

“I want to point out that this is not a repurchase or installment program – that opportunity has already passed,” Buck noted. “Payment must be made in full by June 30 in order to redeem a property.”

Additionally, next year’s redemption program will adhere to the usual pre-pandemic guidelines, including the standard January 30 deadline. Taxpayers should not expect or count on an extension.

For more information, contact the Treasurer’s Office at 845-807-0200.

Funding revised

Legislators, by a 6-2 vote, passed a resolution last Thursday, amending the discretionary funding that was awarded to the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce earlier this year.

While the Chamber still receives $17,500, instead of the entirety of that money going towards technical support (training, educational materials for the creation of programs and projects), now $12,500 will go to that, and $5,000 can be used for marketing the Bagel Festival.

Legislators Joe Perrello and Luis Alvarez voted against the resolution.

Perrello, in comments during Executive Committee, said he supported the money for technical support but was against the $5,000 for the Bagel Festival.

“I have nothing against the Bagel Fest, [but] we can’t be giving money to organizations to run a block party ... If we start handing out money to every town, whether it's an organization or not, it means we have to give it out to everybody,” said Perrello. “Are we prepared to open up a can of worms next year when people start coming here asking [us] to fund their block parties?” 

“I think if it brings people to the area ... It puts heads on beds ... and brings sales tax, [then] yeah, that’s my feeling,” Legislator George Conklin responded.

Perrello challenged the assertion that the Bagel Fest puts heads on beds and that it generated much sales tax.

Dawn Ciorciari, Chairwoman of the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors, told the Democrat the Bagel Festival attracts approximately 10,000 people and that the Chamber estimates that those visitors generate a minimum of $20,000 in sales tax for the County.

Ban the box

“Ban the Box” is a nationwide campaign aimed at removing the check box that asks if applicants have a criminal record from hiring applications.

On Thursday, legislators voted to establish a “Ban the Box” policy for the County of Sullivan.

The resolution states that the County is committed to recruiting a diverse and skilled workforce, and that the Legislature, “ ... is committed to protecting the rights of all its residents, and assisting in the rehabilitation of people with criminal records.”

It further stated that “Ban the Box” is a “proven method” of increasing employment opportunities for individuals with criminal convictions and “aids in reducing” the stigma and bias associated with individuals with a criminal background and “works towards ending structural discrimination.”

Effective August 1, prospective employees will no longer be required to answer questions regarding criminal history on their County application for examination or employment.

Therefore, all County job applications will not contain questions or checkboxes regarding criminal history.

The County will still inquire about and consider a candidate’s prior criminal convictions (through a background check paid for by the County), but only after a conditional offer of employment is made, except as when otherwise required by law.

*Briefs compiled by Managing Editor Joe Abraham. Disclaimer: He is a member of the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors.