Assembly Passes Circuit Breaker With Bi-Partisan Support

by: robert.harding

Tue Aug 19, 2008 at 19:51:12 PM EDT

The vote was 118-24. The 24 votes weren't all Republicans though.

From Liz:

The no votes were:

Amedore, Bacalles, Barclay, Boyle, Burling, Cole, Conte, Crouch, Errigo, Finch, Fitzpatrick, Giglio, Hawley, Hayes, Kolb, Lopez, Morelle, Oaks, O'Mara, Quinn, Reilich, Schimminger, Tedisco, Tobacco.

Excused: Abbate, Gantt, Hikind, Wright.

Absent: Lafayette.

There are a couple prominent upstate Democrats in that list. Assemblyman Joe Morelle and Assemblyman Robin Schimminger both voted against the measure. Nearly half of the Republican side voted for the measure, which says a lot for this legislation.

The Working Families Party weighed in on the passage of this measure:

"Speaker Silver and members of the Assembly have offered a roadmap to solving the very real problem of property taxes that bear no relation to what working and middle class families can afford.  They should be congratulated today for the triumph of common sense.  The Assembly bill would provide real cuts in property taxes for working and retired families - paid for in a fiscally responsible way - while preserving our state's commitment to quality public education.

"It's time to let democracy work.  It's time the State Senate notices that more than 15,000 New Yorkers reached out to their legislators and the Governor to say that the so-called property tax cap is nothing more than an arbitrary restriction on local investment in public education that does nothing to address the property tax mess."

The Alliance for Quality Education also responded to the measure being passed in the Assembly:

"The State Assembly has taken seriously the charge of providing New Yorkers with real property tax relief by adopting a circuit breaker tax cap and reduction plan.  While the State Senate Majority is chasing the sound bites and gimmickry of a so called tax cap that reduces nobody's taxes and threatens the quality of our schools, the Assembly Majority has adopted the only plan in Albany that actually caps and reduces the property taxes of individual homeowners.  The Assembly has clearly drawn a line at the doorstep of our schools and said that we must provide real property tax relief to homeowners, but that we cannot sacrifice the education of our children.  The State Assembly's circuit breaker tax cap and reduction plan is tied to the actual funding needed to reduce property taxes by enacting a small increase in the income taxes paid by millionaires and multi-millionaires and it protects the quality of education.

For years, middle and lower income homeowners have been subsidizing tax cuts given to the wealthiest New Yorkers by way of the spiraling property taxes that resulted from the State of New York paying too small a share of the costs of educating our school kids.  Now the Assembly is insisting that the needs of homeowners and the education of school kids take precedence over putting more money in the pockets of millionaires.  AQE is thankful for the leadership of Speaker Silver in saying no to the tax cap gimmick and yes to bona fide property tax relief and quality education."

Now where does this go from here? That is uncertain. I don't see, unless something changes, the Senate passing a circuit breaker.

Hopefully, if we can't get a circuit breaker through, we could find a way to pass a "best of both worlds" piece of legislation that would appeal to all sides.  

Siena Poll: More New Yorkers Support Circuit Breaker Than A Property Tax Cap

by: robert.harding

Mon Aug 18, 2008 at 11:08:29 AM EDT

The circuit breaker, which would cap property taxes at a certain percentage of the homeowner's income, is supported by 75 percent of New Yorkers according to the Siena Poll. That is equal to the support the circuit breaker had in July when 75 percent of New Yorkers also supported it. Only 18 percent of those surveyed oppose the circuit breaker with 7 percent not knowing their view on the circuit breaker.

To learn more about the circuit breaker, visit the Working Families Party tax plan calculator website.

The property tax cap did not enjoy that much support in the Siena Poll. The property tax cap is supported by Governor David Paterson and the Senate Republicans pushed through the tax cap in a recent special session. According to the Siena Poll, only 66 percent of New Yorkers support a property tax cap. In June, the property tax cap polled at 74 percent and last month the property tax cap came in at 69 percent.

In response to the poll, Dan Cantor of the Working Families Party had this to say:

"It's gratifying to see that voters are choosing circuit-breaker tax relief over a school funding cap as a solution to the property tax problem, exactly the message that we have been sending with our "Wrong Answer" ad and mail campaign.  More than 14,000 voters have called or written to Albany in response and said the same thing: solve our property tax problem without hurting our schools."

The circuit breaker is and has been the better plan for New York. The circuit breaker is a "tax cap" in its own right but it's a tax cap that won't hurt schools and our education system but rather would cap taxes as a percentage of your income. That is a very "user friendly" way of taxing. Taxing based on your ability to pay should be a great method to utilize to stop the crunch on our middle class.

Stiglitz To Paterson: Raise Taxes On Wealthy Instead Of Cutting Expenditures

by: robert.harding

Thu Jul 31, 2008 at 15:18:13 PM EDT

Governor Calls Raising Taxes a "Last Resort"

Asked yesterday if he would raise taxes, Mr. Paterson said he would do so only as a "last resort," saying he feared that imposing higher rates would encourage lawmakers to pile on spending.

"The reason that I'm avoiding it is because I think taxes are addictive," he said. "What happens is when you start taxing, people start thinking of ways of spending money that you taxed."

Mr. Paterson's new economic guru recommended just the opposite course of action in a March 27 letter to the governor and legislative leaders. A copy of the letter was made public yesterday by a liberal fiscal group in Albany.

"New York, like most states, is now facing an unenviable choice: either taxes have to be raised, or expenditures cut," Mr. Stiglitz wrote. "When faced with such an unpleasant choice, economic theory and evidence gives a clear and unambiguous answer: it is economically preferable to raise taxes on those with high incomes than to cut state expenditures."

I have always thought something like a circuit breaker would be the best way to address our economic and tax woes here in New York. The wealthiest of New Yorkers should pay more.

Stiglitz tried to deliver that message, but for some reason, it didn't sink in with Paterson. I don't why he's reluctant to raise taxes on the wealthy.

One of the better plans I have read so far is what Sen. Craig Johnson has proposed. I will have more on Johnson's plan later.

Is the best way to rein in state spending? Well, certainly there is unnecessary spending somewhere. There always is with government. You should rein in. But you should also look at taxation and the approach to taxation. Right now, the middle class is hurting. We need to reform our tax system NOW. We shouldn't have to wait for our legislators to get their backsides to Albany. They should be taking care of it right now. It's that serious of a problem and must be addressed.

Siena Poll: Circuit Breaker Beats Tax Cap; Paterson Poll Numbers Rising; Shelly At 22 Percent

by: robert.harding

Mon Jul 14, 2008 at 21:23:29 PM EDT

According to the poll, Paterson has a 57 percent favorable rating - tied with last month's number. Seven percent rated Paterson's job performance as excellent, up from six percent last month while 41 percent rated his job performance as good, up from 38 percent last month.

Paterson also would fair better in a Democratic primary against Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. Last month, the poll found that Paterson would beat Cuomo 43 percent to 31 percent in a primary. This month, Paterson's numbers increase to 51 percent and Cuomo's drop to 21 percent - a 30 point lead for Paterson.

The only downside for Paterson in the poll comes in a head-to-head matchup with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Paterson did gain on Bloomberg from last month (34 percent in June compared with 37 percent this month) while Bloomberg held steady at 45 percent.

The most intriguing part of the poll was the matchup between the circuit breaker and the property tax cap. The poll found that while 69 percent of New Yorkers support a property tax cap, 75 percent of New Yorkers support a circuit breaker.

The Working Families Party, big proponents of the circuit breaker, had this to say about the poll results today.

"It's no surprise. Working and middle-class New Yorkers are choking on property taxes, and only the so-called "circuit breaker" approach will actually lower anyone's taxes," said Dan Cantor, Working Families Party Executive Director. "A circuit breaker does that by giving property tax relief based on your family's ability to pay."

"Of course, we need to pay for it, and the right way is to modestly increase the rate at which very wealthy New Yorkers pay income taxes. If you do these two things - a circuit breaker for working and middle-class people and a high-end Personal Income Tax increase on people earning more than $300,000 a year, you'll start to get the state's tax system back in balance. Right now, it's totally out of whack."

A cap has its benefits. It wouldn't raise taxes, but it would necessarily lower them either. A circuit breaker would do just that. While capping taxes is better than nothing, a circuit breaker would be our best option.

Finally, one nice tidbit for you. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has a 22 percent favorable rating among New Yorkers with a 32 percent unfavorable rating. That means a majority of New York knows who Silver is and that's what that majority thinks of him.  

SD-38: Greg Julian challenges Tom Morahan to break with Bruno on property taxes

by: cliffweathers

Sat Jun 21, 2008 at 21:44:11 PM EDT

Just today, Julian sent the letter (below) directly to Morahan via e-mail.

Dear Tom,

Once again, measures that are in the best interests of the people of the State of New York and the NY State Senate District that you and I will be competing for, are being prevented from passage, solely due to Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno's refusal to permit them to come to the floor for a vote.

I know that as a long time Republican, it is difficult for you to break with your leader, Mr. Bruno. This fact notwithstanding, I urge you to join me in publicly calling upon Mr. Bruno to permit the Governor's proposal for a Real Property Tax Cap to come to the floor of the NYS Senate for a vote, tomorrow. The people are suffering under the present tax system that you and your colleagues have permitted to exist for too long. It is time for change.

Sincerely,

Greg Julian