Yates County uncovers tax bill error

YATES COUNTY--Town of Jerusalem property owners will be receiving a new line item in their 2018 tax bill to correct an error discovered at the beginning of the month by the Yates County Real Property Tax Director.
News of this error was brought to the Yates County Legislature at Monday afternoon's meeting by District I representative Douglas Paddock.
The error that was discovered resulted in county and town tax bills being sent to property owners lower than they should have been.
The tax rate used to calculate the county tax amount was understated by approximately $0.25 per thousand assessed value. As an example, if a property owner in Jerusalem had an assessed value of $100,000, it was under-billed by approximately $25.
The 2017 tax bills will be due and payable according the the terms and amounts that are stated on the bills. The new line item will appear only on the 2018 tax bill, and is allowable by the NYS Real Property Tax Law.
Other legislative business:
Dark Fiber Network: The Yates County Legislature received an update from EEC Technologies on the Southern Tier Network Open Access dark fiber infrastructure.
EEC Technologies stated that since the last quarterly update Oct. 11, the backbone for the Yates County project has been completed, and the project was completed by the end of the year in order to meet the grant deadlines.
Operational procedures began Oct. 1, and with the project backbone coming in under cost, the company took advantage of the remaining funding by working with Sheriff Ron Spike to build an additional extension to the Sherman Hill Tower.
The Angus Tower, located on Route 14, will have a new exclosure, due to an arrangement made by Spike. All installation and testing fiber and strands has been completed.
The Southern Tier Network, in partnership with the county, is an open access dark fiber infrastructure, which will help make connections into the communities of Geneva, Penn Yan, Watkins Glen, Branchport and Dundee.
Wildlife: According to Daniel Banach and the Finger Lakes Conservation Board, the 2016 deer harvest is above last year's numbers. However, there is a concern about the cormorant, a migratory bird heading south from Lake Ontario, responsible for habitat destruction.
Appointments: David Ferry and John Sawers were unanimously approved to serve on the Yates County Planning Board. Gene Pierce, Rita Gow and Mary Zelazny were appointed to the Finger Lakes Economic Development Center (Yates County IDA) board, the Yates Capital Resource Corp. board, and the Finger Lakes Horizon Economic Development Corp.
Contracts: The Yates Legislature approved contracts for the Software Maintenance Agreement in the amount of $5,337.47 and with Emerson Network Power for preventative maintenance for an uninterrupted power supply at the Public Safety Building for $3,275.58 per year for a three-year term. Also approved was the continuation for the inter-municipal agreement with Schuyler County to share a code enforcement officer at the rate of $3,000 per year. The chairman was also authorized to sign a contract with Bonadio for auditing services in the amount of $4,000.
Employees recognized:
Five years: Kristin Birdsall, Kerry Brennan, Sharon Clark, Lawrence Hansen, Anthony Hill, Paul Hubbard, Anthony Nesbit, Scott Nielsen, Joseph Reed, James Stenzel, Wayne Marsh, Cynthia Turrell.
Ten years: Rae (Jean) Hubbell, Nancy Oppel.
Fifteen years: Jason Bassett, Dusty Blumbergs, Gary Christensen, Valerie Gardner, Krystine Leo, Amy McAdams, Jeffery Meyers, Rodney Phillips.
Twenty years: Derek Blumbergs, Joan Bonnett, Eric Marelli, Heather McLoud, Dorothy Shanto, David Wright.
Twenty-five years: Sharon Dawes, Roger Miller, Leslie Norton, Richard Simpson, Brian Winslow.
Thirty years: David Head, Daryn Potts
Thirty-five years: John Warner.
Per employee request, not all award recipients are listed.