To the editor: 

Two-and-a-half years ago this Democratic-led [Sullivan County] Legislature came in with lofty promises of change... oh boy did we get that. 

We have had NEGATIVE sales tax growth two years in a row. This year we lead all of the other counties in the state with the largest decline in sales tax – a double digit percentage. The rest of the state is booming with sales tax growth, which is a huge driver of the revenue side of the budget. 

We are down nearly 6,000 jobs from the start of their term. Your utility rates have skyrocketed with one legislator in management at NYSEG, the company responsible for the increased costs – while offering zero help to the residents of Sullivan County. 

Healthcare is failing: Crystal Run just announced that as of July 1st all OBGYN care, including prenatal, will be shipped to Middletown, creating unnecessary risks for an already vulnerable population. Infusion services were also moved to Middletown.  SUNY Sullivan just announced another shrinking of course offerings coupled with fifteen staff layoffs. 

They [the legislators] came in with all this fanfare and grand plans, and we find ourselves in a freefall of finances, jobs, healthcare and education. They have failed this community by every measure possible. 

Sullivan County had finally reached a period of financial growth; we were fiscally strong and planning for the future with a positive and practical outlook. That solvency has been decimated by unbridled pet-project spending that has limited to no impact on the taxpayer. 

There is no plan to stem the tide of healthcare, housing, and job exodus, no one rescuing us from the suffocating cost of living in Sullivan County. To speak about fiscal solvency in the past tense should be heartbreaking and infuriating for every resident. 

Instead of action while Rome is burning, your Chairperson is smiling for the camera and handing out certificates.

Rob Doherty

Bethel