To the Editor:

The recent Joint Council of Taxpayer Associations ad thanking our first responders on LBI was highly informative.

Without our volunteer system, it is estimated that our taxes could increase significantly. If you think past water/sewer increases in the low hundreds of dollars were bad, please consider the following: In New York state, a town that lost its volunteer-driven first responder program faced tax increases of $1,200 per million dollars of home value.

August 13, 2025