To the editor:

I was surprised to read news accounts of the governor's proposed tax cap, passed by the State Senate on August 8, described as a "voter-popular plan." Was the writer referring to the June Siena Poll where New Yorkers agreed with the statement "A property tax cap is necessary to help people who have seen property tax bills increase by 7 percent per year over the last 5 years?"

Perhaps the reporter should have read the July Siena Poll, which shows voters actually prefer the circuit breaker proposal over the tax cap. A circuit breaker will provide the taxpayer with real relief, and an equitable distribution of the tax burden.

As a voter, homeowner and taxpayer, I'd like to set the record straight: The idea of giving up my right to vote on a school budget is not popular. The likelihood that our taxes will certainly go up each year, by 4 or 120 percent of the CPI, is not popular. And the resulting educational cuts will not be popular.

In fact, the only thing that I believe is popular is the reputation of the Senate Democrats who had the courage to vote "no."

John Mansfield The writer is a Lindenhurst School Teacher