Taxes: Who are they helping?

By Casey Schneider

     As a nation, Americans are continuously looking for ways to save money, and wondering where all their hard-earned money has gone. 

     According to Theresa A. Kopp, Assistant to Suffolk County Comptroller Joseph A. Sawicki, New Yorkers pay on average 78 percent higher tax burdens than the rest of the country, but for what?

     On the federal level, taxes are collected to mostly fund defense/security, Medicaid, Medicare, and CHIP, as well as Social Security, with the three areas making up over 60 percent of federal tax income. All this money is being spent, while the remaining 20 percent, according to Catherine Rampell of the New York Times Economix blog, is left to be divided between Benefits for retirees and veterans (6 percent), scientific/medical research (3 percent), Transportation infrastructure (3 percent), Education (2 percent), Non-Security International (1 percent), and the remaining 5 percentleft for other miscellaneous needs.

Only 2 percent of all national spending is put towards education, as opposed to 26 percent of the state budget which is put towards schools grades K-12. Higher education, according to Rampell of the New York Times, receives just 12 percent. According to Theresa Kopp, “State tax dollars provide funding for public institutions (State Universities of New York), while state and county tax dollars are used to fund the community college system.”

     “Traditionally, costs for community colleges have been shared equally by New York State, Suffolk County, and student tuition,”  Kopp said.

     Community Colleges are funded by a combination of state and tax dollars, as well as student tuition, yet tuition at Suffolk County Community College rises every semester. With funding coming from a variety of sources, why is there a need to raise tuition for students who are already struggling to make their tuition payments? Students are now having to work more hours, or more physically taxing jobs just to afford their tuition payments, and in some cases it will affect the student’s performance in school.

     In order to keep up with tuition and car payments, former Suffolk County Community College student now at NYU, Kip Denicola is forced to work overnights at the Executive Inn in Westbury, NY.

     “Some days I work from 11pm to 7 am, and then I have to go to class from 8am to 2pm, and I find it nearly impossible to stay awake or get any work done,” said Denicola about working overnight while being a full time student. When asked how working affects him doing schoolwork outside of class he replied, “When I get home from school all I want to do is go to sleep, and although I plan on doing my schoolwork at the hotel, once I am there, schoolwork is the last thing on my mind, and I end up being behind on my work very often.”

     The rise in taxes and tuition makes it difficult for college students, and especially the parents of college students now, but what are parents with small children now going to do when they reach the age where they go off to college?

     Babylon resident, and mother of four, Denise Delio works full-time at Western Suffolk BOCES as a mechanics instructor, is worried about how she will send her kids to school.

     “My husband and I both work full time jobs just to support our children and ourselves, and without a drastic change I don’t see how I am going to afford to send four kids to college” replied Delio when asked about the rising cost of college in these days of economic turmoil. Even worse, Delio’s oldest daughter, Samantha, a freshman in high school, is only a few years away with her younger sister Kimberly only a year behind.

    None of us are immune to these tough economic times, and with no real sign of relief on the horizon Suffolk residents may have to hold their breath before letting out a sigh of relief. This may lead to Suffolk residents asking the question, “Who are these taxes helping?”