Another way to look at this problem is to think about the tax consequences of allowing all this acreage to be developed. A look to the west end of Long Island, where property taxes are the highest in New York State, should quickly tell you that taking land out of the tax base may not be such a bad idea. Were it all to be developed, we'd probably have local property taxes similar to Nassau County. The additional 9,000 acres of space will pay no taxes and will have to be absorbed by the existing property tax base. However, the demand for public services for undeveloped property will be very low as well. There is no demand on school budgets and small demands from fire and police departments, etc.

These lands will be acquired over time, so there should be a slow absorption rate of this land into the town's park system, thus mitigating the small impacts of including this additional 9,000 acres of parkland in the region's park system. Additionally, most of the protected lands proposed in this case statement will be farmland. Tax experts note that farmland, while paying reduced taxes compared to other land, pays more in taxes than it receives in terms of the cost of services needed from local government. Furthermore, the vast majority of farmland is in some agricultural/tax abatement program already, so taxes presently paid are low. Finally, 60% of the region's land will remain subject to real property taxes and future development.

Are There Funding Sources That Could be Pursued Other Than the Transfer Tax?

Residents have already voted to tax themselves to save the land they love. Through open space bonds, towns on the East End of Long Island have already invested more than $50 million to protect open space and farmland. These bonds have been funded through property tax levies. The County Pine Barrens Protection/Clean Drinking Water Protection program is derived from the sales tax, which is levied at .25 of one penny. This is a county sales tax. It is important to note that Suffolk has one of the highest sales taxes in the state. Yet with all that has been done, it is still not enough.

We need a new funding source. Resort and second home communities like Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket and Block Island have all adopted a transfer tax similar to the one proposed for the East End. These areas have had considerable success in land protection and have enjoyed support from the real estate and building sectors as well as the community at large.