Property tax cap proves elusive
June 30, 2011. Ongoing debate: Some say that it won't do enough, others believe the concept is too restrictive. By Brian Amaral, Watertown Daily Times. Read the article >>
Governor Cuomo’s Fiscal Policies: How Will New York’s Economy Be Affected?
June 24, 2011. Governor Cuomo won a great political victory in getting his 2011-2012 budget adopted on time and with very few changes. And it now looks like the Legislature will be enacting - again with very few changes - the very tight cap on property tax levies that the Governor spelled out during his 2010 campaign. This brief examines how the New York economy fared, compared to other states, under the more balanced fiscal policies of recent years. But dramatic cuts in spending can [...]
Proposed New York property tax cap is much more restrictive than the Massachusetts cap after which it is supposedly modeled
June 22, 2011. No lawmaker or taxpayer should be one bit reassured by the Massachusetts experience with a tax cap. New analysis from FPI's Frank Mauro shows what a New York-style tax cap would mean if it had been in effect in Massachusetts over the last decades. Property tax revenues would be less than half what they are today, with devastating implications for the entire array of locally-funded public services. Read report >>
Brooklyn Labor Market Review – Spring 2011
June 22, 2011. Prepared by FPI for the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, the latest issue of the BLMR looks at immigrant entrepreneurs in Brooklyn by sector. The report finds that there are nearly 14,500 Brooklyn immigrant small businesses across a range of sectors from construction to restaurants, grocery stores, child care services and doctors' offices.
Budget Cuts Could Strangle Sputtering Recovery
June 20, 2011. An article by James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.
Proposed Cap Does Not Address New York’s Property Tax “Problem.”
June 15, 2011. A deeper look at the data used to support the proposed cap shows that New York's real tax problem is that hundreds of thousands of low, moderate and middle income families are already paying inordinate shares of their income in property taxes on their primary residences. Only a middle-class Circuit Breaker can provide effective relief for these families in a targeted and cost-efficient manner. Analysis >> and Omnibus Consortium release >>
Incorrect diagnosis of New York’s property tax “problem” will lead to a remedy that is likely to do more harm than good
June 10, 2011. Massachusetts' experience with Proposition 2½ does not support the claim that a cap of the type proposed by Governor Cuomo is workable let alone desirable. If a hard cap of the lesser of 2 percent or the rate of inflation, with no overrides, had been in effect in Massachusetts since 1981-82, that state's property tax revenue would be about 60 percent less than it currently is. The Governor's proposed cap would undermine the quality of the entire array of locally funded public [...]
Testimony at the New York City Council Committee on Finance Hearing on the FY 2012 Executive Budget
June 6, 2011. FPI's James A. Parrott delivered testimony detailing the following points: Against the backdrop of an outlook for a very gradual and drawn-out recovery during which unemployment and economic adversity remain elevated, the Mayor's Executive Budget proposal contains several harmful budget cuts that will curtail vital services in many critical areas. The City needs a more balanced approach to closing large budget gaps; this approach should reduce outlays on contracting out and find ways to enhance revenues. Testimony >>