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Friday, March 19, 2010   51º F

Updated 10/13/2009 10:34 AM

Republican candidate refutes recent attack ad

By: Brian Dwyer

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OSWEGO, NY -- "Another Albany politician. Another scandal. Now it's Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava voting for special corporate tax breaks that her own company applied for."

This is the narrator from the newest advertisement in the 23rd congressional race, paid for by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

So how much truth is there to the attack ad? Here's where it gets tricky. Yes, records show Scozzafava did vote for tax breaks that her company, Wisebuys, applied for a few months later in 2005. Those breaks are called Empire Zones.

"I can't control what they're going to come out with, but what I can say is that's not accurate," Scozzafava said.

Scozzafava says the ad fails to mention it was for an extension of the empire zones and the bill included nearly 30 other items, including sales tax exemptions for clothing and footwear and lowering corporate franchise taxes for small business. She also says the bill passed through the assembly by more than a four to one vote.

"It's supposed to accomplish providing different incentives to attract industry and to create jobs," She said. "That's part of a program that the North Country has used."

And even with all the controversy it's caused, Scozzafava says there still is a place in New York State for Empire Zones.

"Yes there are problems with empire zones, but they still have provided incentives to approximately 8,500 businesses employing hundreds of thousands of people," Scozzafava said.

The ad also alleges that while Scozzafava was voting to lower her taxes, she was raising yours, 190 different times. In fact, most of these votes were not increases at all.

Her campaign says many of those votes were also extensions, this time being sales and hotel taxes, that were requested by local municipalities under "Home Rule" to help keep property taxes down.

As for all this being a scandal, Scozzafava says that's just ridiculous.

Scozzafava is squaring off against Democrat Bill Owens and Conservative Doug Hoffman in the race for the 23rd district.