The following editorial was submitted by Ogdensburg Mayor Jeffrey M. Skelly.

One of the hardest things I have had to learn in life is how to say ‘no.’

As someone who has earned their living in the private sector and now finds themselves in public life making decisions for others I am again reminded about how difficult and necessary the act of simply saying ‘no’ can be.

As parents and grandparents of my generation we know that constantly saying ‘yes’ to a toddler or young adult is a recipe for disaster. Yet we often do it anyway. We might think its okay this time, but we know in our heart of hearts that it is not.

I entered the political arena for the first time in my life nearly a year and a half ago and am again faced with the reality that saying no – or in this case voting no – is never easy.

Since taking office I have worked long and hard to make the taxing and structural changes needed to position this small city for future economic prosperity. In a short time I am proud to say that we have turned this city around. Where once we were basically broke, with no money in the bank, a burgeoning debt and a soaring tax rate per thousand dollars of assessed value, we now have seen our Moody’s borrowing rate improve, our ratio of liquid capital to debt stabilize and the efficiency of government services reach record highs.

We did it by saying no. No to blind spending. No to higher taxes. No to a mindset that there is an endless pool of tax money being generated by blue and white collar residents in this fine small community on the Canadian border at the top of New York state.

And so today, I urge you to vote no again. Ill be voting no on on the library tax proposition. And Ill be voting no on the upcoming school budget.

In recent years the school raised taxes based on the idea that it would be losing state aid. As such they generated another $2 million in revenue. Yet this year, they will see a surplus, and almost unprecedent state aid windfall of $8 million.

But will they give anything back? No, of course not. Will they dial back the tax rate like the city council did? No.

Which begs the question of why not?

If we don’t vote no on the school budget, we don’t draw a line in the sand. We all want good schools, but if you take more money on the premise that you need it – and then don’t need it – isn’t it fair and honest to give your friends and neighbors back that surplus? Id do that in business. Why not the government?

The same is true of my thinking regarding the library.

I am not against libraries. That’s ridiculous.

I want my children and grandchildren to be well- read and to have access to information. But the library board has not kept up with the times. They seem incapable of doing something as simple as balancing their own books. They are not an employment agency. They are a conduit of learning. Now they ask the public to “save our library.” They should have saved themselves. They’ve known for years that the city was shifting the way it financed the library. The library board simply ignored the writing on the wall.

So again, I will be voting no on the library proposition. I love books and consider myself well-read as only a “plumber” can be. But I know that voting “no” sends a message. And it is the right message.

“Don’t waste our tax money and don’t take it for granted.”

As St. Lawrence County’s only city mayor, I take a hard line when it comes to tax and spend politics.

I choose to vote no not out of anger. But out of principle. The school budget is too high. The city budget is too high, and the new library tax is an effort to kick the can down the road to future generations.

If we all work together. If we all draw a line in the sand. If we have the spine to stand up for our beliefs. We all, every one of us, can do our small and major parts in helping to make this city a better and more prosperous place to life.

Mike Skelly

Mayor of Ogdensburg