Letters: Demerits and merits of NYC pre-K plan

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio does not need a tax hike for prekindergarten education ["De Blasio flubs his key issue," Editorial, Feb. 17]. City revenues are fungible. Pre-K could be largely funded from the city's projected budget surplus, absent raises for workers that don't include work rule or health care concessions by the unions.

The purpose of a pre-K tax ultimately is to free up money to fund raises for public employee union members who supported de Blasio so extravagantly in the election after Mayor Michael Bloomberg refused to accede to their demands.

Daniel Bronheim, Great Neck

I don't know why Newsday's editorial showed such hostility to our new mayor. By calling for a dedicated tax, Mayor Bill de Blasio is correct in stressing the need for a reliable stream of funding to implement universal prekindergarten He recognizes that when economic times are bad, education takes a big hit.

Funding the program statewide is fine when the money is there, but what do you think will be first to go in a budget crunch? It will be pre-K.

It seems ridiculous for the city to be subject to the whims of Long Island politicians in Albany. I recall that there wasn't one vote cast for New York mayor in either Nassau or Suffolk.

Tony Smolenski, Little Neck

Editor's note: The writer works for the city's Department of Housing Preservation & Development.