St. Lawrence County is seeking home-grown support for changes to state law that are required if the county is to increase sales taxes and moderate increases in property taxes.

St. Lawrence County Board of Legislators Chair Sallie Brothers said that the desired action from Albany is “an issue of fairness in making sure that all revenue options are available to local governments as they try to balance the need to pay for both mandated and desirable services for the benefit of the public they serve without the burden falling solely upon the property taxpayers.”

The St. Lawrence County Board of Legislators has an online petition urging the New York State Legislature to enact and the governor to sign “home rule” legislation for St. Lawrence County. Such a measure is required if the county is to increase the sales tax rate from the current seven percent to eight percent.

“It is doing so in order that all of its budgeting options be available to it – now and into the future – as it tries to balance the budget with respect to locally desirable services and New York State or federally mandated services and the impact of same on local tax payers,” a statement from the county offices said.

The statement says that nearly all neighboring counties have the flexibility that a higher sales tax rate would allow in order to keep property taxes down, while the county wrestles with increasing costs.

The county tried to get the measure passed in the state Senate and Assembly, but legislators there indicated the request came too late in the session to be acted upon.

The petition can be accessed from a link on the county’s home page at http://www.stlawco.org/ or directly at http://www.change.org/petitions/new-york-state-legislature-sign-home-rule-legislation.