Cornell Cooperative Extension of Nassau County may be the latest victim of Nassau County's fiscal crisis.

For 2004, Nassau County allotted Cornell Cooperative Extension just $200,000 in funding. That money is not nearly enough to keep current programs operating. County funding is matched with grants and state and federal monies and without an increase in county funding, Cornell Cooperative will lose a significant amount of money from those sources as well.

Without the $420,000 that Cornell Cooperative is requesting, Nassau residents will lose critical programs and important educational opportunities in areas such as nutritional workshops, worksite wellness seminars, parenting classes and 4H youth programs.

I am urging all Nassau Legislators and County Executive Suozzi to please honor Cornell Cooperative's funding request of $420,000. It's a small amount to pay for programs that are priceless.

My school tax in Plainview just went up over $600 for the 2003-2004 school year. I am 70 years old and haven’t had children in school for almost 20 years now.

The Town of Oyster Bay Collector of Taxes and the Nassau County Assessment Department both tell me to call the school board and the school board is not the problem. It appears to be the reassessment company.

In 2002, they revalued my house at $220,379 and in 2003, they revalued my house at $264,800 – an increase of $44,421. That is a disgrace and a rip-off, as I can’t get any more money this year for the house than I could have last year. It would seem to me that it is the job of the New York State Legislature to correct the reassessment problem as it is outrageous and to re-evaluate each year is insane and unfair. Someone must take charge and correct this trend that will put more people in Nassau County in poverty. It is time for our representative to give more consideration to the senior citizen and young married couple that would love to stay in Nassau County and not be taxed out.