September 22, 2016. James Parrott, a member of the New York City Council’s Task Force on Economic Development Tax Expenditures chaired by Finance Committee Chair Julissa Ferreras, presented this testimony at a September 22 hearing on the Task Force report and recommendations for a rigorous, ongoing evaluation procedure.  He also urged the Council to convene a hearing on the Hudson Yards property tax breaks, the costs of which are rapidly rising.

PDF of Testimony… (read more)

June 16, 2016. In Income inequality in the US by state, metropolitan area, and county, a new report published by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) for the Economic Analysis and Research Network (EARN), Mark Price, an economist at the Keystone Research Center in Harrisburg, PA and Estelle Sommeiller, a socio-economist at the Institute for Research in Economic and Social Sciences in Greater Paris, France detail the incomes of the top 1 percent and the bottom 99 percent by state, … (read more)

June 2, 2016. The following article by James Parrott appeared in the Spring 2016 issue of The American Prospect magazine.

If you want to learn about the latest manifestations of inequality in urban America, read the real-estate sections of newspapers and magazines and check out the photo spreads on luxury condos in new residential skyscrapers. The palatial size, lavish finishes, and breathtaking price tags of these properties are advertisements of our new Gilded Age. In the area immediately south of … (read more)

March 21, 2016.  Some of the wealthiest New Yorkers have sent an open letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature urging passage of the “1% Plan for New York Tax Fairness” to replace the temporary ‘millionaires tax’ set to expire at the end of next year. The Fiscal Policy Institute’s 1% Plan calls for new tax rates ranging from 7.65% to 9.99% applied to new tax brackets starting at $665,000, the income threshold for the top … (read more)

March 10, 2016. In his briefing of NYC Mayor Bill deBlasio’s FY 2017 Preliminary budget, FPI’s James Parrott highlights the following:

1. Strong economic and tax growth used to further a different set of budget and policy priorities than predecessors: reinvesting in human services; committing new resources to address housing and homelessness; continuing and different investments in public safety; and changing employment and wage policies to aid workers.

2. Cautious budgeting in the face of economic uncertainty: Outyear gaps have been reduced;

March 2, 2016. The education tax credit proposals currently being discussed have significant drawbacks as outlined in FPI’s new brief.

Both the governor’s proposal and the senate’s represent misguided tax policy for a number of reasons:

• The PCEA represents a radical and unwise departure from existing state tax policy because it provides an unprecedented proportion (75 or 90 percent) of tax reduction relative to a contribution. It has the potential to lessen charitable contributions for a wide range of

February 24, 2016. A 50-state study released today by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, co-released in New York by the Fiscal Policy Institute, finds that if President Obama’s executive actions on immigration were permitted to be fully implemented they would bring an additional $82 million in New York state and local tax revenue compared to not having the actions in place.

The executive actions would add to the tax revenue in all 50 states and in the District … (read more)

February 10, 2016. An op-ed by James Parrott, City & State.

The New York state Senate approved legislation on January 26 that would cap the growth in New York City property taxes at the lesser of inflation or 2 percent a year. The 45-16 vote occurred while Mayor Bill de Blasio was testifying nearby at a Joint Legislative Budget hearing.

State senators in favor of this bill made a three-pronged argument: property taxes have become too burdensome for middle-class … (read more)

February 3, 2016. James Parrott testified at a New York State Senate Finance and Assembly Ways and Means Committees hearing on workforce development about the impace of a $15 an hour minimum wage.… (read more)

February 3, 2016. In its 26th annual New York State budget briefing book, the Fiscal Policy Institute analyzes and comments on Governor Andrew Cuomo’s FY 2017 Executive Budget.

The Executive Budget advances some bold and progressive proposals that well reflect the values and needs of New Yorkers. In particular, the governor has shown great leadership and vision in forcefully advocating for a first-in-the nation statewide $15 minimum wage. If enacted, the minimum wage increase would lift the incomes of … (read more)