It appears that there could be the beginnings of a taxpayer revolt brewing in the Town of Mamakating. Approximately 20 residents came to the town board meeting this past Tuesday evening in order to express their growing frustration at the lack of action regarding part-time elected officials' healthcare benefits. As it stands now, council members, despite their part-time status, receive full healthcare coverage for themselves and their families, with the town picking up 100 percent of the premiums. These premiums currently amount to approximately $7,000 for an individual and $15,000 for a family.

Responding to one resident's questions about the 10.33 percent tax increase, Councilmember Ted Brebbia said that he had conducted extensive research into how comparable towns in the ridge area compensate their part-time elected officials. What Brebbia discovered essentially reflects the Journal's own research into this issue — that the Town of Mamakating provides benefits to part-time elected officials that are significantly out of line with virtually all nearby towns of a similar size.

"This is an issue I'm going to be pushing into the next administration," Brebbia said. "And it's something I'm going to be pressing for the remainder of everyone's term here until it's rectified. Because, there's not one of these towns — comparable population, comparable tax base, comparable compensation — where that benefit, for the part-time elected officials, is being paid by the taxpayer. As a matter of fact, more often than not, for the part-time elected officials, the full health insurance premium is in fact contributed by the elected official."

Councilman Dr. Robert Justus then suggested that the board was already doing its share by agreeing to a 10 percent pay cut for the upcoming year. At this point, however, Councilman Brebbia appeared to lose his patience with Dr. Justus, with the former raising his voice to say that this pay cut amounted to just $800 per year, falling far short of the sum these benefits actually cost the taxpayer. Brebbia's outburst caused outgoing councilwoman Judith Young to leave the dais and exit the building. Her departure apparently raised the ire of a number of residents in the gallery, who then heckled Young as she left the room.

After several members of the audience addressed the board, Brebbia made his boldest pronouncement: that these benefits in fact amounted to "stealing from the taxpayer." Brebbia's statement caused a number of people in the audience to applaud loudly.

A few minutes later, things became even more heated when Dr. Justus asked Brebbia whether he had taken the health insurance buyout. As it turns out, in 2008 Brebbia did indeed take the buyout; however, he decided to turn down the buyout in 2009. This buyout system pays town officials and employees for not opting into the town's health plan. The buyout in 2008 amounted to 50 percent of the cost of the annual premium, or about $3,500. Brebbia said that, given the town's fiscal woes, he felt badly about having taken the buyout, which is the reason why he didn't take it this year. Dr. Justus then appeared to imply that Brebbia did not in fact have health insurance in 2008, and that Brebbia may have taken the buyout under false pretenses. Dr. Justus said that Brebbia should produce paperwork indicating that he did in fact have health insurance during this period. Brebbia appeared to bristle at the suggestion, telling Justus that there was no way he was going to give Justus his personal insurance records. The Journal did, however, ask Brebbia if there was any truth to Justus's apparent allegations, and Brebbia's response was that, in the next several days, he would be happy to furnish the Journal with proof of his healthcare insurance for this period.

A number of other residents spoke after this exchange, essentially reiterating that town officials should not be receiving health insurance on the taxpayers' dime, with many vowing to continue to make this an issue when the new administration is sworn in. It indeed appears that this issue will not be going away anytime soon. Brebbia has also called for taxpayers to appear at the end-of-year meeting on December 29 at 6 p.m.

Other Business
The board voted on an abstract that included more than $150,000 of state funds intended for the coffers of the highway department. These pass-through funds meant that the total of this abstract was $194,840.76. The remaining money — $44,000 and change — is in line with a typical abstract for this time of year.

Mr. Dolan of Phillipsport appeared before the board to ask that a resolution to demolish four buildings on Phillipsport Road be rescinded. Several years ago, Mr. Dolan purchased the property on which the buildings sit, apparently unaware that there was a demolition order. Mr. Dolan proceeded to begin stabilizing the two remaining structures (the other two had already been torn down), hoping to begin using one of these as a storage facility for his plumbing business. The town building inspector hit Mr. Dolan with a stop-work order, as he has no building permit. The permit cannot be issued, however, until the resolution calling for the demolition of these buildings is rescinded, placing Mr. Dolan in a catch-22 situation. The board said that it would study the legalities of the situation and would likely have a favorable decision for Mr. Dolan at the end-of year organizational meeting.