“Putnam County Executive Kevin Byrne is building the standard for conservative reforms in local government…”
Americans for Tax Reform
By Dan Murphy
Putnam County Executive Kevin Byrne is being recognized for proposing three pieces of legislation in his first year in office that national taxpayer advocates say should be model policy for local and county governments across our nation.
The three laws are:
Taxpayer Transparency Act – requires live-streaming video of all legislative public meetings and the creation of a budget transparency website
Local Taxpayer Protection Act – requires a 2/3 majority vote to increase property taxes and provides for more public access to the overall budget process
Savings Incentive Partnership Program – directly incentivizes public employees to save taxpayer dollars
Byrne writes, “Each of these ideas aim to increase efficiency, transparency, and accountability in county governments. In November of 2023, I traveled to Arizona and presented our proposed policies at the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), where they were then adopted by ALEC as official model policies for other governments to consider.”
“It is exciting and extremely encouraging to see that the ideas this Administration is actively working towards in Putnam County are now being promulgated beyond our community. Making government more affordable, accountable, and accessible will always be on the forefront of my mind, and if there’s an appetite for other municipalities to embrace that, even better. In 2024, we will continue to work towards making all three of these ideas a reality here in Putnam County,” said Byrne.
In a commentary for Americans for Tax Reform, Grace Sedlazek writes,”Putnam County Executive Kevin Byrne is building the standard for conservative reforms in local government in New York.”
“The Taxpayer Transparency Act’s goal is to make access to the legislative process as simple as possible…The Local Taxpayer Protection Act’s mission is to more directly involve the public in the budget process….The Savings Incentive Partnership Program… incentivizes employees to submit proposals and ideas associated with increased productivity, conservation of resources, and/or reduction of costs associated with the county.”
“With these proposals, Putnam County is taking strides towards more government transparency, and doing so in a way that other local governments across the country can emulate. Each of these programs serve as excellent resources for achieving a government that works with its citizens, rather than a government that dominates constituent voices. These programs are designed to hold elected officials accountable for their actions and keep legislative power in check through more taxpayer engagement,” writes Sedlazek, https://www.atr.org/putnam-county-setting-model-for-accountable-transparent-government/.
