For more than 25 years now, Sam Trombley has been looking out for the residents of his area as their Clinton County legislator.
For the most part, he has done a remarkable job for his peoples, as he likes to refer to them.
A regular guy who would literally give you the shirt off his back to help you out, he is beloved by most in the rural Ellenburg area.
One time, about a decade or so ago, Sam read in the paper about one of his elderly constituents in Dannemora who was on a fixed income and could not afford $100 for new glasses. The next day, Sam was at the woman's house, cash in hand, out of his own pocket, to help her out.
He didn't seek any fanfare or publicity or a pat on the back; he simply delighted in being able to help. That's the kind of guy he is.
Sam's most recent effort to stand up for the little guy is certainly admirable, but we have to disagree with him on this one.
Trombley was the lone legislator to vote against implementing a 3-percent bed tax on all hotel and motel rooms in the county.
The tax, which goes into effect Oct. 1, will generate about $300,000 per year, which will be used to attract economically beneficial fishing tournaments and other lucrative tourist attractions.
Trombley argues that during a recession is not the time to be adding taxes of any kind. He noted that the county just raised the sales tax last year and adding another tax would be burdensome.
He also argues that one of the reasons the new Plattsburgh International Airport is doing so well is because Canadian travelers like the free parking so much, stressing the free part.
While Trombley recognizes that tourism is a great boon to the area, he says Plattsburgh is not Lake George, Saratoga or Lake Placid, where tourism is king.
The county's very healthy sales-tax revenue should be more than enough to promote an appropriate amount of tourism for the county, he says.
Maybe so, but the beauty of the bed tax is that it will be paid, for the most part, by people who don't live here, and it won't hurt property-tax payers.
The 3-percent tax will amount to about $2 per room. We can't envision visitors choosing not to stay here because of an extra two bucks.
Besides, they can hardly go anywhere else to avoid the bed tax, since there are only three counties in the state that don't have one.
The legislature took a big step -- even a historic one, as chamber president Garry Douglas said -- in advancing the promotion of tourism and marketing for the county, and we eagerly await the fruits of that decision.
Keep up the good fight, Sam. We need guys like you in government. But we also need the bed tax.
Opinion
August 21, 2008
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