CONTACT

info@fiscalpolicy.org

ALBANY

Frank Mauro

Fiscal Policy Institute

1 Lear Jet Lane

Latham, NY 12110

518-786-3156

NEW YORK CITY

James Parrott

Fiscal Policy Institute

11 Park Place

New York, NY 10007

212-721-5624

On the day the state jobs report was released, the Fiscal Policy Institute put out a report saying that a "tale of two recessions" was emerging in the city. As Wall Street prepares for year-end bonus season, some 40% of the city's more than 400,000 unemployed have been out of work for six months or longer. And the city's "real" unemployment rate - which includes discouraged workers and those involuntarily working part time -has hit 16%.

"With each passing day, the disconnect grows," said James Parrott, the institute's chief economist. "Wall Street is recovering, but in the boroughs and neighborhoods, unemployment has doubled in the past year."

November 19, 2009.  Poverty rate rises in Westchester, Rockland. By Tim Henderson, The Journal News.

November 18, 2009.  School districts waiting for solution on state aid. By Meghan E. Murphy, Times Herald-Record.

"The inconsistency is that the governor is arguing that school districts should use their fund balances but he doesn't want to use his," said Frank Mauro of the Fiscal Policy Institute.

November 17, 2009.  Soup kitchens: 'Business' is up 15%. City Harvest says "recession's aftershocks" are still being felt in New York City communities as more New Yorkers are going hungry. By Miriam Kreinin Souccar, Crain's New York Business.

November 15, 2009.  Huh? NYC work force expands in recession. 'Unusual,' economists say - and explanations may surprise you. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

November 13, 2009.  Job numbers spike in Bronx. The Bronx was the only NYC boro to see its jobs numbers spike in the first quarter. That's right: The Bronx. Only three counties in U.S. delivered better numbers. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

November 11, 2009.  Wall Street Restructures; Will Commercial Market? By Cody Lyon, GlobeSt.com.

November 10, 2009.  Needy New Yorkers don't need budget cuts, say advocacy groups. By Amanda Cedrone, Legislative Gazette.

November 2, 2009.  As Money Runs Out, Can Albany Avoid the 'Pain'? By David King, Gotham Gazette.

James Parrott of the Fiscal Policy Institute said Paterson's plan is potentially disastrous for New York's economy. Parrot estimates that the state could lose 25,000 jobs if the cuts to education and health care funding go through. He said the job loss will not "prime" New York's economy, as Paterson has said his cuts will do, but hurt it.

November 1, 2009.  Bloomberg takes big lead into NYC mayor election. By Edith Honan and Joan Gralla, Reuters.

October 28, 2009.  School advocates: Cuts unfairly applied. State formula hurts poor districts, calculations show. By Meghan E. Murphy, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

October 27, 2009.  Criticisms Abound at NYS Budget Hearing. Reported by Arun Venugopal, WNYC.

October 26, 2009.  Fiscal Policy Institute testimony on budget deficit. By Casey Seiler, Capital Confidential (Albany Times Union).

The bottom line: The FPI feels the governor's reduction plan will do extreme damage to state's recovery, and a state spending cap would be even worse. The FPI recommends tapping the "rainy-day fund," which Gov. Paterson has resisted all down the line.

October 26, 2009.  An Innovator Takes a Fairly Conventional Approach. By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.

October 23, 2009.  City Focuses on Recession-Proof Health Care Jobs. By Diane Cardwell, New York Times.

October 22, 2009.  State's fiscal crisis nears climax: stay tuned for biggest losers. By Brooke Richie, examiner.com (New York Public Policy).

Frank Mauro, Director of the Fiscal Policy Institute, a non-partisan research and education organization focusing on tax, budget, and economic issues, has argued that the Governor’s corrective action plan is a shortsighted policy recommendation that will undermine the State’s attempts at economic recovery. Taking $1.8 billion of demand out of New York's economy will disrupt recovery efforts by impacting spending on wages, goods, and services.

October 21, 2009.  Paterson, leaders talk about deficit reduction plan. Reported by Walt McClure, FOX 23 News, Albany.

October 16, 2009.  The High Price of Being Rich. By George Sax, Artvoice (Buffalo).

October 15, 2009.  City Unemployment Rises to 10.3 Percent. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times City Room blog.

The official unemployment rate does not count all people who are out of work, only those who are actively seeking full-time jobs. If all out-of-work New Yorkers were included, the city’s unemployment rate would be 15.8 percent, according to James Parrott, the chief economist for the Fiscal Policy Institute, a research group that focuses on tax, budget and economic issues.

October 15, 2009.  Bloomberg Has Added Jobs, and Lost Some, Too. By Christine Haughney, New York Times.

October 13, 2009.  State lawmakers question property-tax exemptions. By Cara Matthews, Elmira Star-Gazette. Also in the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle and the Ithaca Journal.

The number of residential property-tax exemptions that the state allows local governments to opt into has grown, said Frank Mauro, executive director of the Fiscal Policy Institute.

"From a tax fairness perspective, I think the issue that needs to be settled is, do residential exemptions overall make the property-tax system more fair or less fair," he said.

October 11, 2009.  Mayor's economy: Grades are in. Bloomberg gets an A for quality of life, a C for budget. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

October 1, 2009.  Report: Recession is killing jobs, wages. By Gersh Kuntzman, "The Brooklyn Paper" of the New York Post.

September 29, 2009.  New York lags in jobless payouts. By Hannan Adely, Journal News.

Anthony Rocco gets a $165 weekly unemployment check, not enough to cover the most basic necessities like rent or a bus pass. The 28-year-old Mount Vernon resident, who is taking classes at Concordia College, was among more than 216,400 people who lost their jobs in New York state in the past year. New York lags behind other states in the rate that it compensates laid-off workers, according to a report. (Photo: Carucha L. Meuse/The Journal News)

September 27, 2009.  Furloughs, layoffs may be state's next steps. By James T. Madore, Newsday.

September 25, 2009.  Recession Less Painful in Brooklyn Than Elsewhere, Says Chamber. Brooklyn Eagle.

September 25, 2009.  Chamber Reports ARRA Impact On Brooklyn. NYC Workforce Weekly. (PDF, p. 2.)

September 24, 2009.  Report: Students A Strong Force In Brooklyn Economy. Reported by Jeanine Ramirez, NY 1.

September 22, 2009.  Census: 1 in 9 in region lack health care coverage. By Tim Henderson, Journal News.

September 22, 2009.  Amid Talk of Recovery, Jobless Rates Reach Double Digits. By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.

September 18, 2009.  A grim employment milestone: Jobs situation in region and state "continues to deteriorate," analyst says. By Chris Churchill, Albany Times Union.

September 17, 2009.  Recession over? Main Street demurs. By Timothy O'Connor, the Journal News.

September 16, 2009.  Recession damage? It's bad. Real bad. New report tracks record declines in local wages (-4.8%), income (-2.7%) and consumer spending (-8.6%) following last fall's financial system collapse. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

September 16, 2009.  Recession Taking Its Toll In New York, Report Finds. By Karen DeWitt, WXXI.

September 16, 2009.  Report: State unemployment rate hits 14.1 percent. By James V. Franco, the Troy Record.

September 6, 2009.  Co-op City gets hammered: Joblessness hits 12.3% in working-class area long seen as bastion of stability; not S. Bronx. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

September 3, 2009.  Dealing with New York State's Budget Deficit. Dave Galletly hosted FPI's Frank Mauro and Michael Breslin, Albany County Executive. On VoxPop, WAMC's daily call-in talk program.

September 2, 2009.  NY 'shadow government' debt rises to $140 billion. By Michael Gormley, AP. Also: Syracuse Post-Standard, Legislative Gazette, CNBC, MSN Money.

September 1, 2009.  Immigration as economic stimulus. By Craig Mellow, Corporate Board Member.

August 31, 2009.  Nonprofits' outlook after a year of living dangerously. By Anne Noyes Saini, City Limits. Also posted to NewsBlaze.

August 24, 2009.  Comptroller: Number of NYC jobless largest since '92. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

August 23, 2009.  For LI, economic hard times are not yet over. By Randi F. Marshall, Newsday.

August 17, 2009.  Interest groups warn of 'deregulatory disaster.' By Damore Ramwa, Legislative Gazette.

August 14, 2009.  Governor Sends Mixed Signals on Environmental Protection, Advocates Say. By Karen DeWitt, WXXI.

August 13, 2009.  Groups question Paterson's power to regulate. By Heather Senison, Gannett News Service, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin. Also in the Poughkeepsie Journal and the Ithaca Journal.

August 12, 2009.  'Circuit Breaker' Could Relieve Property Taxes.

July 30, 2009.  Lack of hard data clouds assessment of federal stimulus programs in N.Y. By Brian Tumulty, Elmira Star Gazette. Also in the Elmira Star Gazette.

James Parrott, chief economist for the Fiscal Policy Institute in Latham, said the $26 billion that the state will receive this year and in 2010 is reducing the severity of the recession, even if it's hard to measure the employment impact.

For example, health care employment has increased in the state, Parrott said. He attributed that to the infusion of federal stimulus aid to help cover the cost of Medicaid. And he said retail and service jobs have been saved by an increase in consumer spending attributable to stimulus money for food stamps and extended unemployment benefits.

July 27, 2009.  Federal stimulus a hit-and-miss for Long Island. By Elizabeth Moore, Newsday.

In New York, stimulus money closed 31 percent of the state's budget gap and headed off a proposed $1.1 billion cut in public school funding and other cuts in health, education and aid to the poor, noted Frank Mauro of the liberal Fiscal Policy Institute.

July 27, 2009.  Albany may block tough action on Empire Zone firms: Assembly to consider bill already passed by Senate. By Jennifer Fusco, Utica Observer-Dispatch.

July 26, 2009.  For millions of workers, a minimum wage increase still falls short of a living wage. By Albor Ruiz, columnist, New York Daily News.

July 24, 2009.  A minimum effort for workers. An editorial from El Diario / La Prensa. In Spanish.

July 24, 2009.  One thin dime more: New York's minimum wage increases to $7.25. By Jordan Carleo-Evangelist, Albany Times-Union.

July 24, 2009.  Waiters left out of latest minimum wage rise. Reuters. Reposted on the U.S. Daily News.

July 24, 2009.  Federal minimum wage will increase to $7.25. By Casey McNulty, WRGB (CBS 6), Albany.

July 23, 2009.  About 123,000 NY workers affected by minimum-wage hike. By Cara Matthews, Albany Watch, a Journal News blog.

July 23, 2009.  New York City Mayor Is a Force for Philanthropy in Tough Times. New program designed to spur volunteerism and efforts to help charities weather the recession could be a model for other cities, nonprofit observers say. By Caroline Preston, Chronicle of Philanthropy.

July 13, 2009.  Job Losses Show Wider Racial Gap in New York. By Patrick McGeehan and Mathew R. Warren, New York Times.

July 13, 2009.  Blacks See Wages Shrink. Dollars and Sense blog.

July 9, 2009.  Wage Push Pivotal in Armory Benefits Battle. By Jordan Moss, Norwood News.

July 8, 2009.  Job losses not as bad as predicted. Metro New York.

The city has lost more than 100,000 jobs in the current recession, but so far that's been far less than most forecasts, thanks in part to the federal bailout of the financial sector. "It's had a profound effect in moderating job losses in banking and on Wall Street," said economist James Parrott of the Fiscal Policy Institute.

July 7, 2009.  Astorino's comments on immigrants draw fire. By Leah Rae, The Journal News.

July 3, 2009.  Armory battle rages: Both sides make pleas to CB 7. By Daniel Beekman, yournabe.com.

July 2, 2009.  June's jobless jump jolts stocks. Employers slashed more workers last month than many expected. How rough is it? In NYC, nearly one in four black males are unemployed or underemployed. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com.

July 2, 2009.  Boost in Jobless Benefits Stalled in Albany. WNYC.

July 1, 2009.  NY Missing the Stim Funds Boat For Jobs? By Susan Barnett, WAMC.

July 1, 2009.  Schumer backs public health insurance option. By Roger Muehlig, Batavia Daily News.

June 28, 2009.  Unemployed swamp fund. New York spends $100M a week as Uncle Sam shores up plan; top benefit is one of nation's stingiest. By James M. Odato, Albany Times Union.

June 25, 2009.  Amid Senate Chaos, Hope Fades for a Bill to Raise Jobless Benefits. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

June 23, 2009.  New York State's Business Climate and Fiscal Health. Alan Chartock hosted FPI's Frank Mauro and Kenneth Adams of the Business Council of New York State. On VoxPop, WAMC's daily call-in talk program.

June 22, 2009.  Hunger Action: Welfare reforms in need of reform. By T.J. Raphael, Legislative Gazette.

June 18, 2009.  A Closer Look at Balancing State Budgets Around the Country. An interview with Frank Mauro, WBEZ Chicago Public Radio.

June 17, 2009.  Let the Minimum Wage Increase Stand. A column by Mark Lieberman, the senior economist for the Fox Business Network.

June 16, 2009.  New York City Leaders Propose Single Sales Factor, Other Tax Changes. By Nicola M. White, Tax Analysts.

June 9, 2009.  The Numbers Are In: Most Americans Want an Immigration Overhaul. By Seth Hoy, AlterNet. Reposted on Immigration News and Updates, July 7, 2009.

June 8, 2009.  Bloomberg, Quinn Seek Billions in Breaks for Businesses. By Neil deMause for Village Voice blogs.

June 8, 2009.  No Fast Action Expected In Stark Replacement: Finance commissioner post could remain vacant until after election. By David Freedlander, City Hall.

June 7, 2009.  NYC pushes $2.7B break for big biz. Tax change may keep HQs here; timing, jobs growth in question. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

Using only local sales to calculate corporate income taxes "will significantly erode the city's business income tax base, with no apparent benefit," says James Parrott, deputy director of the Fiscal Policy Institute. He adds that the measure comes with no mandates for job creation, despite officials' lofty projections.

June 5, 2009.  Facts and Questions at Immigration Forum. By T.J. Clemente, Dan's Papers (Bridgehampton).

June 5, 2009.  Finding Common Ground on Immigration Debate. Sag Harbor Express.

June 4, 2009.  The Underground Economy. By Carissa Katz, East Hampton Star.

June 2, 2009.  Circuit breaker supporters still hopeful despite a lack of funds. By Rick Karlin, Capitol Confidential.

May 28, 2009.  Campaign finance reform would really affect people. A Newsday editorial.

May 27, 2009.  Experts say boro will grow. Diverse Queens economy helped boro survive recession: Panelists. By Jeremy Walsh, Queens Village Times. Print versions of this story also appeared in the Astoria Times, the Fresh Meadows Times, the Little Neck Ledger, the Whitestone Ledger, the Flushing Times, the Ridgewood Ledger, the Forest Hills Ledger, the Richmond Hill Times, and the Bayside Times.

May 24, 2009.  Wall St. job losses not quite adding up: Despite the banking sector's collapse, Wall Street job losses are significantly less than predicted, at least so far. By Hilary Potkewitz, Crain's New York Business.

May 19, 2009.  The Regressive Effects of a Sale Tax Increase. By Glenn Pasanen, Gotham Gazette.

Interestingly, in New York State from 1975 to 2008, the top personal income tax rate dropped steadily from a high of 15.375 percent in 1975 to 10 percent by 1981, 7.875 percent by 1989 and 6.85 percent by 1997, according to a recent report by the Fiscal Policy Institute. The top rate stayed at 6.85 percent from 1997 through 2008 with the exception of a temporary top rate of 7.70 percent from 2003 through 2005. The Fiscal Policy Institute points out that, were the highest state rate still in effect, the state would have about $20 billion more in tax revenues per year.

May 19, 2009.  Call for fiscal restraint by state: Coalition rolls out agenda it says will help New York businesses. By Eric Anderson, Albany Times-Union.

May 19, 2009.  Groups Seek to Stop Public Financing of New Towers at Ground Zero. By Charles V. Bagli, New York Times.

May 19, 2009.  Civic groups back Port Authority in WTC battle. In an open letter, they argue the agency should halt financing at just one World Trade Center building. By Theresa Agovino, crainsnewyork.com.

May 15, 2009.  Region gets older, more diverse, census shows. By Tim Henderson and Leah Rae, The Journal News.

May 15, 2009.  Prevailing wage letter way off. A guest column by Marilyn M. Oppedisano, Syracuse Post-Star.

May 10, 2009.  Property-tax pain growing throughout the state: As economy stalls and prices rise, more are feeling the squeeze. By Meghan E. Murphy, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

CASE STUDY

Lisa and Anthony Kimball of the Village of Montgomery bought their home three years ago at the peak of the market. Their budget is now being squeezed by increasing property taxes. Here's how the three most-discussed property reform bills in the state Senate would impact their taxes.

2008

Income: $85,000

Town tax: $1,827.59

Village tax: $2,426.60

School tax: $5,396.30

Total: $9,650.49

 

OPTION 1

Bill numbers: S.253/A.7094

 

What it does: Establishes a circuit breaker credit that covers all property taxes based on property value. Establishes brackets where those making under $100,000 get the largest credit, which gradually decreases so taxpayers making more than $250,000 receive no credit.

 

Total relief:

2009: $0.00

2010 and beyond: $3,185.34

 

OPTION 2

Bill number: S.4239

 

What it does: Similar to S.253/A.7094. Establishes a circuit breaker credit for all property taxes based on property value. The bill phases in over four years to give the state time to shift funding. Taxpayers would see less savings in the first three years. Those making under $100,000 get the largest credit, which gradually decreases so taxpayers making more than $250,000 receive no credit.

 

Total relief:

2009: $1,400.34

2010: $1,697.84

2011: $2,292.84

2012 and beyond: $3,185.34

 

OPTION 3

Bill number: S.1849-C

 

What it does: Re-establishes the STAR rebate checks program beginning in fall 2009 and establishes a circuit breaker credit that covers school property taxes beginning with the 2010 calendar year tax year.

 

Total relief:

2009: $421.22

2010: $628.63

2011: $698.83

2012 and beyond: $769.04

Source: Calculations provided for the Times Herald-Record by Frank Mauro, executive director of the Fiscal Policy Institute

May 10, 2009.  Speak English? If not, city has sweeping plan. By Peter Spencer, Staten Island Advance. Also, an earlier version of the story, posted May 9.

April 30, 2009.  Corzine reviews immigration panel report. By Glenn Townes, Amsterdam News.

April 30, 2009.  NYC celebrates Immigrant Heritage Week. By Momar G. Visaya, Asian Journal.

April 28, 2009.  The Sugar Daddy Melts. By Eliot Brown, New York Observer.

April 27, 2009.  Immigration reform is coming. By Jon M. Casey, Country Folks.

April 27, 2009.  Where the Jobs Are. New York magazine.

"There are 25 specific industries we track that had more jobs in the first quarter this year than the first quarter last year," says James Parrott, chief economist at the Fiscal Policy Institute.

April 27, 2009.  Experts see recession lingering on. By Randi F. Marshall, Newsday.

April 24, 2009.  Property tax cap pushed. By Paul Post, The Saratogian.

April 24, 2009.  What the economic experts are saying. By Randi F. Marshall, Newsday.

April 24, 2009.  Unveil Tax Relief Plan. Illustrated News, Long Island.

April 22, 23, 25, and 26.  City Talk: a program of CUNY-TV hosted by Doug Muzzio of Baruch College's School of Public Affairs. Guests: E.J. McMahon of the Manhattan Institute and FPI's James Parrott. Cable channel 75 in New York City. Dates: Wednesday 4/22 (4:30 pm and 9:30 pm), Thursday 4/23 (3:30 am), Saturday 4/25 (3:30 pm), Sunday 4/26 (11:30 am).

April 21, 2009.  WAMC's Vox Pop featured "New York State Fiscal Policy," with guests Frank Mauro of FPI and Bob Ward of the Rockefeller Institute. Page with link to podcast.

April 20, 2009.  City loses fewer jobs than expected. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com.

April 18, 2009.  It's bad, but not that bad. Viewpoints from "two noted local economists," FPI's James Parrott and Ronnie Lowenstein of the Independent Budget Office. Crains New York Business.

April 17, 2009.  SUNY: Losing Millions in Funding. Despite cuts in state funds, college moving ahead with $120 million plan to expand and upgrade its science facilities. By Ken Little, Oswego County Business Magazine.

April 17, 2009.  Port Authority: WTC Site Faces Decades of Delay. Reported by Matthew Schuerman, WNYC.

April 15, 2009.  Hope, but:  Immigration reform push resumes but no special Irish visas. By Susan Falvella Garraty, Irish Echo.

April 14, 2009.  Is Immigration Overhaul Vital To U.S. Recovery? Reported by Jennifer Ludden for NPR's Morning Edition.

David Kallick of the Fiscal Policy Institute in New York says when 5 percent of the workforce lacks legal status, the economy takes another kind of hit.

"It means they can start an entry level job, but they can't really make the step to improve their education, get to the next level," he says. "And so you're essentially holding a whole contingent of people back from contributing even more to the economy than they do."

April 13, 2009.  NY lawmakers asked to consider coalition's circuit breaker tax plan. By Anna Helhoski, Legislative Gazette.

April 13, 2009.  Immigration Think Tank Urges Obama to Create Path to Citizenship. By Rob Kuznia, HispanicBusiness.com.

April 13, 2009.  Eating the Seed Corn. An editorial from the New York Post.

April 10, 2009.  Did we hit bottom yet? Local NYC economy is showing some small signs of life. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com.

April 9, 2009.  Health, Human Services, Cultural Organizations Employ 15 Percent of New York City Workers. Philanthropy News Digest.

April 8, 2009.  Tax Hike on Rich Is Apple Dumping. By David Seifman, New York Post.

Frank Mauro, of the Fiscal Policy Institute, a supporter of the tax increase, took issue with the IBO's findings. He said by his calculations, "at least" 18 percent of the new tax revenue would come from out-of-staters, nearly triple the figure estimated by the IBO.

April 5, 2009.  Recession Taking Toll on Better Educated Workers. 1010 WINS.

April 4, 2009.  This Time, Slump Hits Well-Educated, Too. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

April 4, 2009.  Economic bust takes wind out of LI baby boomers' sails. By Thomas Maier, Newsday.

April 3, 2009.  Budget Glitch Does Not Mean Raise, Judges Told. By Joel Stashenko, New York Law Journal.

April 1, 2009.  Deal to Cut Costs Is Close for Builders and Unions. By Charles F. Bagli, New York Times.

April 1, 2009.  New York State Budget Analysis: Alan Chartock hosts FPI's Frank Mauro and E.J. McMahon of the Empire Center for New York State Policy. WAMC.

March 31, 2009.  Budget critics: save some. Republicans up in arms over quickly draining federal stimulus money. By Patrick Arden, metro.us.

March 30, 2009.  NY State Budget Hikes Taxes On NY Wealthy. Reported by Arun Venugopal, WNYC.

March 25, 2009.  Tax Us, Please. At least some wealthy New Yorkers have the right idea. An editorial from the Syracuse Post Standard.

Some 80 well-to-do New Yorkers stepped up this week and sent an open letter to Gov. David Paterson and state legislators, asking Albany to raise their taxes. Instead of cutting essential services to fill a state budget gap currently pegged at $14.3 billion, they propose "an increase in income taxes on those who can afford it - which means us."

One of the signers, retired Albany-area entrepreneur Chet Opalka, said at a news conference in Albany Monday that he's been pretty lucky in life and doesn't want the state to "cut in all the wrong places." Instead, he said, "in these times, it's important for the haves to take care of the have-nots."

This public-spirited gesture comes as legislative leaders huddle in search of a budget agreement by the mandated deadline of April 1. A "millionaire's tax" reportedly is an on-again, off-again proposition.

The liberal Fiscal Policy Institute notes that state tax rates on the highest earners have been halved over the past 30 years - those earning $30,000 now pay the same rate as those earning $30 million. The tax burden has shifted to middle-class taxpayers, and to even more regressive local property taxes and sales taxes.

Though some warn raising taxes on the rich would drive them away, a recent story in The New York Times and a report from the Fiscal Policy Institute suggest otherwise. Douglass S. Massey, an expert on public finance and migration at Princeton, told the Times there is no convincing evidence such a tax boost affects mobility decisions.

The last time New York enacted a temporary tax surcharge on the wealthy, between 2003 and 2005, the number of high-income-earners in the state grew from 250,000 to more than 325,000, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute.

March 24, 2009.  Fourscore rich say 'tax us more': More than 80 wealthy New Yorkers ask leaders to boost tax on well-to-do. By Casey Seiler, Albany Times Union.

March 24, 2009.  Experts: Taxing NY's Wealthiest Won't Chase Them Away. Reported by Mark Scheerer, New York New Connection. Also in the Long Island Press.

March 23, 2009.  Personal income tax reform: The least damaging way to close New York State's budget gap. FPI's Frank Mauro interviewed by Fred Dicker on his Albany radio show, TALK 1300 WGDJ. (Interview starts at 33:50.)

March 23, 2009.  Adjunctification of CUNY: Professors, students speak candidly about effects of budget cuts. By Keith Arora-Williams, The Ticker (Barcuh College, CUNY).

March 2009.  Give it Back! Getting New York's Wealthiest to Pay Their Fair Share. An editorial from the The GC Advocate (CUNY Graduate Center).

March 20, 2009.  The New York State budget: proposals to raise taxes and cut spending and whether we'll have an on time budget this year. FPI's Frank Mauro interviewed by Host David Galletly on the Capitol Connection, WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

March 18, 2009.  Taxing Logic. By George Sax, Artvoice.

March 16, 2009.  Union Proposes a Way to Employ More, Spend Less. By Casey Samulski, citylimits.org.

March 15, 2009.  The Ordeal of David Paterson. By Rob Gurwitt, Governing Magazine.

March 15, 2009.  How to know when economic recovery is under way. By Randi F. Marshall, Newsday.

March 10, 2009.  Forum focuses on the benefits of education funding. By Kristen Hamner, Legislative Gazette.

March 8, 2009.  NYC: A Nice Place to Be Unemployed? By Richard Wells, Brooklyn Rail.

Right now, New Yorkers earning $15,000 pay 12.6% of their income to the state and to municipalities. Those making $1.6 million or more pay half that. James Parrott and Frank Mauro of the Fiscal Policy Institute write in the Gotham Gazette that from 2004 to 2008 public spending grew less than 2.9%, barely the rate of inflation. But the tax cutting spree between 1994 and 2000 "reduced the state's tax revenues by about $10 billion a year." The Fair Share Tax Reform Act will add three new top level brackets, at $250,000, $500,000, and $1 million. It should go some way to correct the imbalance.

March 5, 2009.  Reaping the whirlwind. The Economist.

March 1, 2009.  Obama tax hike could hit higher percentage on LIers. By Thomas Maier, Newsday.

February 22, 2009.  Raising tax on rich gaining ground. By Sara Foss, Schenectady Daily Gazette.

"There is increasing support for this in the Legislature," said Frank Mauro, executive director of the Fiscal Policy Institute in Latham. "There's a set of reasons coming together, that people are articulating, and that people understand. That's why there's increasing public support for a progressive income tax."

February 18, 2009.  CUNY Cuts Not New: Recent Report Sees a Pattern of Cuts. By Cinelle Ariola, The Hunter (College) Envoy.

February 17, 2009.  City may have to service Hudson Yards bonds for longer than originally anticipated. By Daniel Geiger, Real Estate Weekly.

February 16, 2009.  Fiscal experts: State economy in trouble. By Tom Wanamaker, Hudson Register-Star.

February 15, 2009.  Broken dreams: The struggle of NYC working-class immigrants. By Emily Ngo, am New York.

February 13, 2009.  Averted $4.2M Ax by State: PSC Says Its Campaign Headed Off CUNY Cuts. By David Sims, The Chief.

February 12, 2009.  Education groups want school aid restorations. By Cara Matthews, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin. Also in the Ithaca Journal and the Albany Times Union.

February 12, 2009.  We just can't afford a 'shop until you drop' mentality. By Fred LeBrun, Albany Times-Union.

February 9, 2009.  Playing - and Talking - Budgets. By Gail Robinson, Gotham Gazette's Wonkster blog.

February 5, 2009.  Tax opponents implore Paterson. Crain's Insider.

February 4, 2009.  NYS Budget: The STAR Rebate. By Rachel Ward, WXXI.

February 4, 2009.  Study: Mismatch between school spending and needs. northshoreoflongisland.com.

February 2, 2009.  How to Balance the State Budget. By Frank Mauro and James Parrott, Gotham Gazette.

February 2, 2009.  Use stimulus billions carefully, fiscal watchdog groups say. By Chris McKenna, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

February 2, 2009.  New senator needs to take realistic look at immigration policy. A column by Betsy V. Palmieri, executive director, Hudson Valley Community Coalition. Journal News.

And Gillibrand might be surprised to find that immigrants are by no means only low-wage workers. Immigrants make up a significant portion of nurses, doctors, accountants, and professors, for example, as well as construction, restaurant, and child-care workers. A study by David D. Kallick of the Fiscal Policy Institute showed that immigrants are responsible for nearly a quarter of New York state's gross domestic product - they contribute 22 percent to GDP, while making up 21 percent of the population in 2005. Gillibrand should bear that in mind; a recession is no time to throw a wet rag over nearly a quarter of the state economy.

February 2, 2009.  Страховете на Ню Йорк: кризата от 70-те ["Fear in New York: The Crisis of the 70s". Dnevnik (Bulgaria) a.m.

January 31, 2009.  New York lobbies for stimulus funds. By Elizabeth Moore and Tom Brune, Newsday.

January 30, 2009.  Report Sees a Failure in Educating All Students. By Bruce Lambert, New York Times.

January 30, 2009.  Report: LIers like magnet schools, property tax plans. By John Hildebrand, Newsday.

January 30, 2009.  PSC: Report Shows Folly Of Further Cuts at CUNY. By David Sims, The Chief.

January 30, 2009.  Day laborers weigh options in economic downturn. By Alissa Figueroa, Westmore News - Rye Brook.

January 30, 2009.  Say Crisis Not What It Was in Mid-70s, But Neither is Labor. By Tommy Hallissey, The Chief.

January 29, 2009.  New York's unemployment rate soars. By Momar G. Visaya, Asian Journal - The Filipino-American Community Newspaper.

January 28, 2009.  Inmigración para principiantes ["Immigration for beginners"]. El Diario La Prensa.

January 28, 2009.  LI schools could see benefits from stimulus plan. By Elizabeth Moore, Newsday.

January 28, 2009.  Union Membership Rises Amid Economic Uncertainty, Surging Layoffs. By Jeremy Smerd, Workforce Management.

January 27, 2009.  Lighten weight of tax burden. A column by James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, in the Albany Times Union.

Both fairness and sound economics should play a role in closing New York's budget gap.

January 26, 2009.  IBM incentives worth cost? Local development official says financial packages are critical, but some states have been excessive. By Eileen Mozinski, Dubuque (IA) Telegraph Herald.

Mauro argues that companies pitting cities and states against one another to nab jobs is a less-than-desirable approach.

"Subsidy competition is unfortunate, and governments should at least write agreements tightly enough to make sure they get what they are paying for," he said.

January 26, 2009.  Governor Paints Grim Outlook in State Address as SUNY Deals With More Budget Cuts. By Frank Posillico, The Stony Brook University Spokesman.

January 26, 2009.  Debunking the claim that civil servants are overcompensated in New York, and explaining that increasing wages and benefits for average workers is critical to solving the economic crisis (at about 25:57). Building Bridges, WBAI.

January 25, 2009.  Advocates decry SUNY tuition increase. By Sara Foss, Schenectady Gazette.

January 25, 2009.  Improving New York with Peter Pollak: Interview with David Dyssegaard Kallick on Funding Public Higher Education. empirepage.com.

January 23, 2009.  State Jobless Rate Soars; Benefits Extension Seen. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

January 23, 2009.  Jobless rate soaring in area: Region's unemployment rate hits 5.9 percent as 6,000 thrown out of work. By Chris Churchill, Albany Times Union.

January 22, 2009.  City suffers worst job loss in five years: Nearly 50,000 jobs were lost in 2008 as December unemployment rate jumps to 7.4%. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com.

January 22, 2009.  LI unemployment jumps in December. By Laura Glasser, Long Island Business News.

January 20, 2009.  Group wants shift in tax philosophy. By Edward J. Carr, Legislative Gazette.

January 20, 2009.  In Albany, Higher Taxes for the Rich Expected. By Danny Hakim, New York Times.

Over the last 30 years, the trend has been to pare back income tax rates on the rich, federally and in the state. Since the mid-1970s, the state has cut its top tax rate from 15.375 percent to 6.85 percent. The top income tax rate in New Jersey is 8.97 percent, and in Connecticut it is 5 percent, according to data from the Fiscal Policy Institute, a liberal research group.

January 20, 2009.  Labor Gears up for Lean Times With Wide-Ranging Proposals. By Chris Bragg, The Capitol.

January 17, 2009.  A New Report Urges the State Government to Pay Attention to Education as Public Universities Face Increased Enrollment with Inadequate Funding. Sing Tao Daily.

January 16, 2009.  New York under-invests in higher education, Report finds. IndiaPost.com.

January 15, 2009.  Report: State shortchanging SUNY, CUNY. New York is not funding its public university systems to keep up with rising enrollment, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com.

January 15, 2009.  Advocates push for tax-relief plan. By Heather Senison, Journal News.

January 15, 2009.  Report: New York under-invests in education. By Cara Matthews for Albany Watch, a Journal News blog.

January 15, 2009.  Report documents SUNY aid cuts. By Allissa Kline, Business First of Buffalo. Also in the Albany Business Review.

January 14, 2009.  Groups wants state to relieve middle-class tax burden. By Heather Senison, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin.

January 14, 2009.  Reformers to propose new property tax cap law. By Paul Post, The Saratogian.

January 12, 2009.  Building a better model for construction wages. By Janet Murphy, City Limits.

January 10, 2009.  In New York, No Crisis for Niche Manufacturers. By Christine Haughney, New York Times.

January 10, 2009.  Some area stimulus projects under Obama already funded. By Elizabeth Cooper, Utica Observer-Dispatch.

January 9, 2009.  Loss of 524K jobs is highest in 16 years. By Carrie Mason-Draffen, Newsday.

January 8, 2009.  The Brian Lehrer Show: Retail Economics. FPI's James Parrott, with  Lynn Thomasson, stock market reporter for Bloomberg News, and Leslie Price of Racked.com, discuss the city's retail sector: sales, jobs, layoffs. WNYC. (18:06)

January 8, 2009.  Overtaxing middle class simply unfair. By Buffalo News columnist Rod Watson.

January 8, 2009.  New report says more jobs at risk in city. In a report released Thursday, the Independent Budget Office gave a grim forecast, estimating that 243,000 jobs will be lost in the current recession. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

January 8, 2009.  Deep Impact: Budget meeting reveals frightening reality. By Jefferson Siegel, Chelsea Now.

January 8, 2009.  Is all the doom surrounding minimum wage increases just a mirage? By Paul Schrag, Lakewood (Washington) Weekly Volcano.

January 7, 2009.  State's Unemployment System Buckles Under Surging Demand. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

January 4, 2009.  Stress and the city. New York is gripped by fear. Are we headed back to the bad old days of the 1970s? By Daniel Massey and Miriam Kreinin Souccar, Crain's New York Business.

January 2, 2009.  N.Y. faces difficult decisions to bridge budget gap. By Jill Terreri, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.

December 31, 2008.  Gloom and gloomier in 2009. By Garrett Sloane, AM New York.

December 24, 2008.  Taxation tiptoes around the rich. A column by Tim Louis Macaluso, Rochester City Newspaper.

More than 100 economists from around the state have signed a letter to Governor Paterson, urging him to raise high-end income taxes to close the budget gap, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute. And they say that steep cuts in spending as proposed by Paterson will weaken the already struggling economy. It is a view that Princeton University professor Larry Bartels discusses in his book, "Unequal Democracy; the Political Economy of the New Gilded Age."

December 23, 2008.  Retail Employees Lead City's Low-Wage Workers. By Elizabeth Dowskin for Runnin' Scared, a Village Voice blog.

December 22, 2008.  NYC may lose $2 bln in tax revs from Wall Street. Reported by Joan Gralla for Reuters.

December 21, 2008.  Governor's austerity budget raises opposition of diverse New Yorkers. A statement by Frank Mauro, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.

December 19, 2008.   Job Losses in the City Cut Across Many Areas. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times. A longer version of this article appeared in the print edition.

December 19, 2008.  I © New York ... Economists. By Chuck Sheketoff, Blue Oregon.

December 18, 2008.  People Behaving Poorly May Be the Ones to Save the State From the Poorhouse. By Clyde Haberman, New York Times.

December 18, 2008.  Unemployment climbs to 6.3% in city. As the economy deteriorates, New York is catching up to the rest of the nation in job losses: the city's private sector employment fell by 17,000 over the last 12 months. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com.

December 16, 2008.  Let the wealthy do their part. An editorial from El Diario / La Prensa.

December 15, 2008.  Advocacy groups push for millionaires' tax, end of middle class STAR. By Caitlin Purcell, Legislative Gazette.

December 15, 2008.  Activists to Governor: Make Better Budget Choices! Reported by Dave Lucas, WAMC.

December 15, 2008.  Status of the State Budget (video). Reported by Steve Flamisch, WGRB CBS 6 Albany. Also on the CBS website, Report: Paterson plan would tax clothing, footwear, non-diet soda (text).

December 15, 2008.  Working Families offer a way to raise $5B. By James Odato, in the Albany Times-Union's Capital Confidential blog.

December 15, 2008.  From Wall Street to Taxi Stand: The Recession Trickles Down. By Siobhan Devine, Gotham Gazette.

December 15, 2008.  Pain, gain in budget figures: Paterson proposal calls for hike in welfare payouts, billions in cuts to health care, education. By Irene Jay Liu, Albany Times Union.

December 14, 2008.  Deep cuts coming in New York budget proposal. By Jay Gallagher, Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. Also in the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin, the Poughkeepsie Journal and the Elmira Star-Gazette.

December 14, 2008.  White Collar Workers Feel Blues. By Patrick McGeehan, Syracuse Post-Standard.

December 13, 2008.  City Officials Look for More Cuts, Financial Aid. Reported by Grace Rauh, NY1 News.

December 12, 2008.  Job Losses in City Reach Up Ladder. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times. An earlier version of this story appeared December 11 on the City Room blog.

December 11, 2008.  Study: NYC Unemployment Rate To Rise. NY1 News.

December 11, 2008.  New York City Sees Wall St. Bonuses Falling 50%. Deal Book Blog, edited by Andrew Ross Sorkin of the New York Times.

December 11, 2008.  City Comptroller raises job-loss estimate. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com. Also at Workforce Management.

December 4, 2008.  Economic crisis makes for strange political bedfellows. By Dan Janison, Newsday.

December 2, 2008.  Can we talk about taxes? A column by Mary Anna Towler,  Rochester City Newspaper.

The Fiscal Policy Institute, a progressive public-policy group, has compiled the evidence ... Since 1976, New York State has cut its top income-tax rate from the previous 15.375 percent down to 6.85 percent. That means, notes the Institute, that whether your family makes $41,000 a year or $1 million, your tax rate is the same. "The large multi-year tax cuts enacted between 1994 and 2005 are now reducing state revenue by over $17 billion per year," says the Institute.

December 1, 2008.  How Not to Deal with the Oncoming Depression: The Case of New York State. A column by Lawrence S. Wittner, History News Network.

November 30, 2008.  City residents feel economy's pain. Respondents to a recent poll say the city's economy is in poor condition and 40% fear for their jobs, while 80% say they have already cut back on spending this year. By Matthew Sollars, Crain's New York Business.

November 27, 2008.  Could It Get This Bad Again? By Phoebe Neidl, Brooklyn Eagle.

November 24, 2008.  Hospitals and Schools Preserve Jobs. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

November 21, 2008.  Everyday New Yorkers hurt most. A column by Amy Traub, Albany Times Union.

November 20, 2008.  They're a part of the Island: Immigrants pay taxes and otherwise contribute to our community. A column by FPI senior fellow David Dyssegaard Kallick, Newsday.

November 20, 2008.  Barack, attack labor abuses: Obama must crack down on wage theft. By Errol Louis, New York Daily News.

November 19, 2008.  After the Meltdown: New York's Future. By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.

November 19, 2008.  Economics: The feds have to do more. By Jeremy Moule, Rochester City Newspaper.

November 18, 2008.  My View: Access to health care is a life-and-death issue for cancer patients. A column by Sandra Cassese, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

November 18, 2008.  Teachers rule again: School jobs steady as others decline. By Elizabeth Lazarowitz, New York Daily News.

November 18, 2008.  New battle after Iraq: Veteran secures employment in technology field. By Melissa Grace, New York Daily News.

November 18, 2008.  New York's Budget Battle: A Case Study for Obama? By James Ridgeway, Mother Jones.

November 18, 2008.  Progressive income tax would help state crisis. A letter by Peter LaVenia, Albany Times Union.

November 18, 2008.  Leaders fail to cut budget in special session. By Lisa Spitz, WSTM Syracuse. Also, Education advocates decrying proposed school cuts in state budget. WCAX Vermont.

November 18, 2008.  New Yorkers to state leaders: Cut spending, not raise taxes. By Joseph Spector, Journal News.

November 17, 2008.  Budget Backfire: Cuts on the Needy Won't Help. A column by Ron Deutsch and Mary Brosnahan, City Limits.

It's sink or swim time for New York state. So let's get our priorities straight and face the difficult financial situation with a balanced approach that looks at both the spending and revenue side of the budget equation. Reckless cuts alone will only pull us deeper into the recession's undertow.

November 17, 2008.  Health care can't absorb more cuts. By James J. Barba, president and CEO, Albany Medical Center; Steven P. Boyle, president and CEO, St. Peter's Health Care Services; James W. Connolly, president and CEO, Ellis Hospital; Gino J. Pazzaglini, President and CEO, Seton Health and James K. Reed, M.D. president and CEO, Northeast Health. Albany Times Union.

November 17, 2008.  The Cost of Cuts. An editorial from the Cornell Daily Sun, Ithaca.

November 17, 2008.  Education cut could affect CFE resolution. By Cara Matthews, Politics on the Hudson (Journal News).

November 15, 2008.  Real money is out there for N. Y. A guest column by Richard C. Iannuzzi, Albany Times Union.

November 13, 2008.  Gov. Paterson Announces More NY Budget Cuts. By Katy Mantyk, Epoch Times.

November 12, 2008.  Paterson Cuts Deeper, Resistance Gets Stouter. By Jimmy Vielkind, New York Observer.

"He's doing this entirely from an accounting ledger perspective - he's not taking the economic impact of his cuts into consideration," said Frank Mauro, a liberal economist who is executive director of the Fiscal Policy Institute. Mauro said that Paterson should restrict his actions to the $1.5 billion deficit and use $1.039 billion from the tax stabilization reserve fund.

November 12, 2008.  Proposed tuition hike worries students. By Matt McFarland, WNYT.

November 12, 2008.  Long Island barely avoiding recession. By Randi Marshall and Emi Endo, Newsday.

November 5, 2008.  New Guidelines Have Been Established for Food Stamps. By Glenn Graves, Walton Reporter.

November 4, 2008.  Governor Paterson Means Business: Spitzer's successor disses his bad old radical self. By Tom Robbins, Village Voice.

Paterson appears to have bought the notion that higher personal-income taxes cause the rich to flee. This may be the teachings of The Fountainhead, but there's no real-world evidence for it. Were it so, New York's wealthy would long ago have escaped to places like Georgia, where politicians make sure that millionaires pay the same tax rate as day laborers. As Frank Mauro, the tireless pro-union advocate of the Fiscal Policy Institute in Albany, points out, the rich have not even fled their estates next door in New Jersey, which has long taken an extra bite - almost 9 percent - out of the incomes of those making over $500,000.

What does cause people to move or stay away, says Mauro, is a decline in public services. "Our fear is that if you try and close a budget gap of the magnitude that the governor is projecting, you will be inevitably cutting services that are important to low- and middle-income families," he says. "We know that expenditure cuts put more drag on the economy than high-end taxes."

November 3, 2008.  Immigrants Confront the Recession. By Larry Tung, Gotham Gazette.

November 1, 2008.  Budget crisis will cut deep in NYC: Faces $1 billion in losses; schools, hospitals, nursing homes big targets. By Erik Engquist, Crain's New York Business.

October 28, 2008.  Premium Fraud Draws More Attention as Economy Totters. By Bill Kidd, workcompcentral.com.

October 28, 2008.  NYC city council supports new tax on carry. A majority of the city council supports a proposal by the Working Families Party, a grassroots political group, to include carried interest under the city's 4% unincorporated business tax. By Christopher Witkowski, Private Equity Real Estate.

October 27, 2008.  Tap immigrant potential. An editorial from El Diario / La Prensa.

October 27, 2008.  How Congress spells relief. By Erik Engquist and Mike Sollars, Crain's New York Business.

Congressional leaders are discussing a stimulus package that could send $50 billion in relief to state and local governments. "New York could get 10% of that, depending on how it's done," says James Parrott of the Fiscal Policy Institute. "If it's done through Medicaid, New York would get more."

October 24, 2008.  New York City Council Votes to Allow Members, Mayor to Run for 3rd Terms. By Ted Phillips, The Bond Buyer.

October 22, 2008.  U.S. Bank Is Cautious in Report on Region. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times. (In the October 23 print edition.)

October 20, 2008.  Toward an Egalitarian Market. GRITtv with Laura Flanders.

October 19, 2008.  Forecast: Job losses not as bad this time around. Diverse economy, quality of life should soften the blow of next recession. By Daniel Massey, Crain's New York Business.

October 17, 2008.  Young workers in New York now earn no more than their counterparts did in 1979 despite being better educated. Finfacts Ireland.

October 16, 2008.  For Young New Yorkers, Wages Stuck in 1979. By Jennifer 8. Lee, New York Times City Room Blog.

October 14, 2008.  Lawmakers question proposed raises for social services workers. By Elizabeth Cooper, Utica Observer-Dispatch.

October 8, 2008.  More regulation inevitable. Turkish Daily News.

"The financial crisis puts a dramatic failure of unregulated markets directly in front of the public," says David Dyssegaard Kallick, senior fellow at the Fiscal Policy Institute, based in New York. "There could hardly be a more powerful argument for regulation than the failure of banks that are 'too big to fail.'"

October 8, 2008.  Food stamp benefits increase for many. By Braulio Basaldua, Queens Courier.

October 6, 2008.  We Could Better Integrate New Immigrants into American Society - And Should. By Ian Reifowitz, History News Network at George Mason University.

October 3, 2008.  Governor wants $2 billion in budget cuts: Gov. David Paterson is calling the Legislature back for another budget-cutting session in November. By Matthew Sollars, crainsnewyork.com.

October 3, 2008.  Economists: Inaction on bailout is dangerous. Local experts backing Wall Street rescue effort. By Sara Foss, Schenectady Gazette.

October 2, 2008.  A new look, but same mission. By Salle E. Richards, Elmira Star-Gazette.

September 29, 2008.  A New Push to Let Non-Citizens Vote. By Larry Tung, Gotham Gazette.

September 28, 2008.  Power Shifts From N.Y. to D.C.: After Wall Street's Quake, Manhattan Braces for Financial Tsunami. By Keith B. Richburg, Washington Post.

September 26, 2008.  Los trabajadores latinos y la sindicalización. An op ed by Sonia Ivany and David Dyssegaard Kallick, El Diario / La Prensa. Also posted in English on IPANY's Voices That Must Be Heard: Latino workers and unions.

September 25, 2008.  Lower Hudson Valley taxes among highest in U.S. By Dwight R. Worley, Journal News.

September 23, 2008.  The Backstory of the Financial Collapse. Call it Gall Street. How else to describe an industry that applauds nearly $500 million in bonuses for executives taking an entire economy down with them? By Tom Robbins, Village Voice.

September 22, 2008.  The End of Wall Street as We Know It.  By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.

September 21, 2008.  Experts: Even with plans, economic recovery to take time. By Randi F. Marshall, Newsday. Also: am New York.

September 21, 2008.  Manufacturing still shows life in region: Local producers work at getting rid of trend. By Jordan Carleo-Evangelist, Albany Times Union.

September 20, 2008.  Spreading pain will cost 90,000 jobs: Retailers to be hit hard; tourism may finally weaken. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com.

September 17, 2008.  NY economy may not suffer as badly as thought: Bailouts, mergers and diversity may help it weather Wall Street crisis. By David B. Caruso (AP), msnbc. Also: Newsday, am New York, the Journal News, Business Week, Forbes.com, International Herald Tribune, International Business Times, Yahoo Finance, AOL Money & Finance and others.

September 17, 2008.  The Brian Lehrer Show: What Should Washington Do? FPI's James Parrott and Nicole Gelinas of the Manhattan Institute discuss how the government should respond to the latest fiscal crisis. WNYC. (25:31)

September 17, 2008.  Hispanic Union Workers. Gotham Gazette's Report of the Day.

September 16, 2008.  Bonanza para latinos agremiados. By Jose Acosta, El Diario / La Prensa.

September 16, 2008.  Economists say impact on region tough to forecast. By Christine Young, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

September 16, 2008.  Counties brace for tax impact of Wall Street woes. By James Schlett, Schenectady Daily Gazette.

September 16, 2008.  Congestion Pricing Is Popular Among Ideas To Boost MTA. By Benjamin Sarlin, New York Sun.

September 15, 2008.  Wall Street losses could impact employment. By Elizabeth Moore, Newsday. Also: Are we looking at hard economic times ahead? (Newsday, September 16.)

September 15, 2008.  New York economy will feel Wall Street's pain. Estimates that 33,000 jobs in the New York City securities industry will be lost during the current downturn could be revised upward. By Daniel Massey, crainsnewyork.com.

September 15, 2008.  Could Selling Bridges Solve Congestion? By William Neuman, New York Times City Room.

September 15, 2008.  Brooklyn Shows Resiliency. Gotham Gazette's Report of the Day.

September 14, 2008.  Bank of America, Barclays look to aid Lehman Brothers, but no promises. By Elizabeth Lazarowitz and William Sherman, New York Daily News.

September 12, 2008.  Brooklyn Enjoys Decade of Job Growth, But Losses Expected in Coming Recession. By Phoebe Neidl, Brooklyn Daily Eagle.

September 12, 2008.  Brooklyn Could Lose 6,000 Jobs, Report Says. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times City Room.

September 10, 2008.  Mayor Seeks to Disband Lower Manhattan Panel. By Charles V. Bagli, New York Times.

September 9, 2008.  SUNY leaders plead case to reverse cuts. By Delen Goldberg, Syracuse Post-Standard.

September 9, 2008.  Four Places to Seek Help From While Job Hunting. By AnnaMaria Andriotis, smartmoney.com

September 5, 2008.  Businesses hold back on fuel savings. New York City companies that added surcharges and hiked prices because of gasoline increases are not in a hurry to roll them back now that the price of fuel has dropped. By Matthew Sollars, crainsnewyork.com.

September 2, 2008.  NY Dems come home to find state in an economic mess. By Jay Gallagher, Journal News.

September 1, 2008.  Deal with obstacles facing our workers. A Labor Day editorial from the Troy Record.

It is more than time for our leaders in government and private industry to start dealing with the issues affecting our nation's workers. If they are successful in dealing with this issues, their actions will help put this state and nation back on a solid economic foundation.

August 31, 2008.  Not quite a picnic. An editorial from the Albany Times Union.

August 31, 2008.  Wage squeeze. By Eric Anderson, Albany Times Union.

August 31, 2008.  Incomes here are up, but still lag U. S. By Dave Robinson, Buffalo News.

August 29, 2008.  Out of work in New York. By Michelle Chen, Viewsday, a Newsday opinion blog.

If the sea of about 84,000 spectators at INVESCO Field at Mile High seemed like a lot to you last night, imagine how many arenas we could fill with a much less cheery crowd here in New York. About half a million workers across the state were stuck on the unemployment rolls as of July, according to a new report by the Fiscal Policy Institute.
...

The trends signal a troubling change, but not a hopeless one, FPI says. The report urges Albany lawmakers to respond by reforming the state's unemployment insurance system (which currently doles out about $300 per week on average), to help families ride out the economic slump while softening the impact of eroding wages.

August 29, 2008.  More to overcome. An editorial from the Journal News.

... in a week filled with remembrances about a long-ago speech and promises to come, [Martin Luther King, Jr.] would want to remind the celebrants of Denver and St. Paul and all our communities that his life's work concerned not only racial equality, but also economic fairness and opportunity for all. There is so much more to overcome. The campaign trail should help inform how we - all of us - do just that.

August 29, 2008.  Unemployment insurance system strained. By Cara Matthews, Ithaca Journal.

August 28, 2008.  Jobless Fund Is Running Out of Money. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times City Room. (Also in print edition, August 29.)

August 28, 2008.  Unemployment leaps over 20 percent in 25 New York counties. By Joan Gralla, Reuters. Also, WAMC-Albany.

August 28, 2008.  Unemployment Way Up in New York State. By Ilya Marritz, WNYC.

August 28, 2008.  A broken safety net. An editorial from El Diario / La Prensa. In Spanish: Una malla de seguridad sin fondo.

If New York legislators are interested in heading off a snowballing problem, they should modernize the state employment insurance system.

A report released today by the Fiscal Policy Institute shows that 25 counties in New York State, including Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester, are experiencing at least 20 percent increases in the number of unemployed persons.

August 28, 2008.  Report: Unemployment-insurance system under strain. By Cara Matthews, Journal News.

August 28, 2008.  Big Increase in Unemployment Could Tax State's Resources. By Peter Kiefer, New York Sun.

August 28, 2008.  Wall St. woes drill NYC: After sidestepping national downturn, city's joblessness on rise. By Patrick Arden, New York Metro.

August 28, 2008.  Medio millón de desempleados en NYS. By Alexandra Ochoa, Hoy Nueva York.

August 28, 2008.  Labor group: Bad economy putting strain on safety net for jobless. By Cara Matthews, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.

August 28, 2008.  Report: Local jobless rates worsening. By Tom Wanamaker, Catskill Daily Mail.

August 28, 2008.  Study: NYS unemployment rising, system in need of repair. WWTI-Watertown.

August 27, 2008.  NY poverty rate drops, leads North; Rate highest among upstate families. Also, Census: Poverty level, rate of uninsured decline. By Cara Matthews, Poughkeepsie Journal.

August 27, 2008.  Poverty down, income inequality up in Lower Hudson Valley. By Dwight R. Worley, Journal News.

August 27, 2008.  Poverty declining in state, but Rochester's rate is 29.1%. By Cara Matthews, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.

August 27, 2008.  Sullivan's poverty rate among highest in the state. By Matt King, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

August 27, 2008.  Census: Fewer Long Island residents below poverty level. By Olivia Winslow, Newsday. Also on TMCnet.com.

August 27, 2008.  Census: Poverty level, rate of uninsured decline; income rises. By Cara Matthews, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin.

August 27, 2008.  State poverty rate goes down but is highest of all northern states. By Cara Matthews, Ithaca Journal.

August 27, 2008.  The poor gained no ground in 2007: Census Bureau reports poverty rate was unchanged even as household income increased. By Cathleen F. Crowley, Albany Times Union.

August 25, 2008.  America's Invisible Rich: Politicians can't seem to see any wealthy people when deciding whom to tax. By Sam Pizzigati, AlterNet.

Nationally, the top 1 percent of taxpayers in 2006 collected just over a fifth of all personal income in the United States, 21.1 percent. In ten states, including New York, the top 1 percent claimed an income share over that 21.1 percent level.

These ten states also share something else in common. All ten, the Washington, D.C.-based Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy charged last week, have tax systems that "generally ignore" the considerable deep-pocket presence within their borders.

...

"Restoring some of the New York tax system's lost progressivity," Frank Mauro of the Fiscal Policy Institute, a state research group, noted last week, "should be part of the state's effort to balance its budget."

New York Governor David Paterson apparently disagrees. Paterson has no "millionaire's tax" in his package of proposals to cut the state's $6.4 billion budget deficit. The governor seems to buy the line, wildly popular on Wall Street, that upping tax rates on the rich will lead to a massive statewide exodus of New York's wealthy.

That's what a former New York governor, George Pataki, claimed back in 2003 when lawmakers voted to place a temporary 7.7 percent tax on income over $500,000 and a 7.5 percent tax on any income that couples report over $150,000. Pataki vetoed this tax hike on New York's most affluent, but lawmakers then enacted the measure over his veto. What happened? Over the next three years, with the tax hike on the wealthy that Pataki vetoed on the books, the number of taxpayers in New York making over $200,000 actually increased by 31 percent.

August 22, 2008.  Poll numbers and the property tax: Another take. By Dan Janison, Newsday's Spin Cycle blog.

August 22, 2008.  Organización abre las puertas a inmigrantes profesionales de NY. By Victor Mimoni, El Correo de Queens.

August 20, 2008.  Of interest. Plattsburgh Press-Republican.

August 19, 2008.  Tax reform group is 'disappointed' with Assembly spending reductions bill. Mid-Hudson News.

August 19, 2008.  Council of Economic Advisors named. www.empirestatenews.net.

August 18, 2008.  Paterson Convenes Economic Council. By Sewell Chan, New York Times City Room.

August 18, 2008.  Paterson's economic council. By Irene Jay Liu, Times Union Capitol Confidential.

August 18, 2008.  Paterson Names Economic Team. By Joseph Spector, Gannett Albany Watch.

August 17, 2008.  Paterson's tax cap proposal criticized. By Sara Foss, Schenectady Daily Gazette.

August 16, 2008.  Property tax reform proponents unveil plan: Legislators, group back 'circuit breaker.' By John Davis, Poughkeepsie Journal.

The occasion was the unveiling of the Omnibus Bill that would combine short-term tax relief and long-term tax reform. It proposes enacting a "circuit breaker" and, in the long run, shifting costs to the state.

The Omnibus Bill is the brainchild of Frank Mauro, director of the Fiscal Policy Institute, an Albany-based economic think tank.

"We came up with this vision that sort of embraces the best of a number of bills out there," he said.

August 16, 2008.  Bill would offer immediate relief on property tax. By Jeremiah Horrigan, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

August 16, 2008.  Property tax reform bill proposed at Ulster conference. Mid-Hudson News. Also in the Catskill News.

August 16, 2008.  Ulster lawmaker, institute chief offer property tax reform bill. Kingston Daily Freeman.

August 15, 2008.  Job market figures: a murky view. By Michelle Chen, Viewsday, a Newsday opinion blog.

August 14, 2008.  State Report Tallying Jobs Finds Glass Half Empty. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

August 14, 2008.  Budget battle Deja Vu All Over Again. By Rick Karlin, Times Union Capitol Confidential.

August 14, 2008.  Immigrant professionals continue to drive NYC's GDP. IndiaPost.com.

August 13, 2008.  Let the wealthy do their part. An editorial from El Diario / La Prensa.

In closing New York's projected $26 billion budget deficit, we agree with Governor David Paterson when he says that raising taxes should be the last resort. New Yorkers already pay a lot of taxes. But a proposal for a surcharge on the wealthiest New Yorkers is certainly in order considering the state's economic woes ...

In a state and city with the country's widest income disparities between the rich and the poor, protecting the underdog is all the more necessary.

August 12, 2008.  Capping the Tax Growth. WBNG-Binghamton.

August 11, 2008.  New Yorkers among top taxpayers. By Elizabeth Butler Cordova, crainsnewyork.com.

August 10, 2008.  Which is the real Paterson? By Alan Chartock, Kingston Daily Freeman.

August 9-10, 2008.  "New York State Comptroller's Take on Budget Crisis" and "Millionaire's Tax: On the Money?" FPI executive director Frank Mauro was a guest on WLIW's public affairs show, Crosson and Welles. Other discussants included Thomas DiNapoli, New York State Comptroller, Joye Brown, Newsday columnist, Newsday, and Robert Gaffney, president of Dowling College.

August 8, 2008.  Think tank: N.J. tops in taxes, N.Y. ranks second. By Jay Gallagher, Gannett News Service, Journal News. Also in the Poughkeepsie Journal and (on August 11) the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin and the Elmira Star-Gazette.

August 7, 2008.  Paying now . . . or later. An editorial from the Journal News.

August 6, 2008.  Discussion of state budget and impact of policy on working class (at about 29:38). Wake-up Call, WBAI.

August 6, 2008.  NY state voters favor millionaire's tax - poll.  By Joan Gralla and Leslie Adler, Reuters via Forbes.com.

August 5, 2008.  The federal minimum wage and lower income workers in New York.  1370 Connection, WXXI, Rochester.

August 4, 2008.  Governor Patterson Plays the Depression Card - Proposes Massive Cuts Instead of Millionaire's Tax. Building Bridges, WBAI.

August 4, 2008.  The state of finances: Lawmakers, up for re-election may not be ready to make the $600M in budget cuts the governor wants. By James T. Madore and Elizabeth Moore, Newsday.

August 4, 2008.  NY state budget: How bad is bad? By Anne Michaud, Viewsday, a Newsday opinion blog.

August 4, 2008.  Immigrants make up large portion of economic output. By Nicole Estaphan, WKTV-Utica.

August 3, 2008.  New faces in new places: Immigrant population is increasing, by Jill Bryce. Immigrants make it all work: Some industries depend on international recruiting efforts, by Jill Bryce and Sarah Foss. (These stories cite FPI's November 2007 report, Working for a Better Life.) Schenectady Daily Gazette.

August 1, 2008.  Time to link tax breaks to promises. An editorial from the Middletown Times Herald-Record.

July 31, 2008.  Fiscal Woes of the Past Prod Paterson to Act Early. By Danny Hakim, New York Times.

July 31, 2008.  Report about dwindling illegal immigration sparks debate. By Dave Marcus, Newsday. Also in the Santa Barbara News-Press.

July 30, 2008.  Lean times in Albany. From Viewsday, a Newsday opinion blog.

The landscape is already polarizing as the business-oriented Citizens Budget Commission calls for controlling government spending on social services while the labor-friendly Fiscal Policy Institute urges ramping up taxes for higher income brackets.

July 30, 2008.  A special roundtable discussion on New York's economic health convened by WAMC-Albany in the wake of Governor Paterson's proposed budget cuts. Hosted by Alan Chartock.

July 30, 2008.  New York's Paterson Seeks Emergency Session as Deficit Balloons. By Henry Goldman and Michael Quint, www.bloomberg.com.

"Increasing taxes on higher-income people is less harmful than cutting government spending," Renwick said. "It should be a balanced approach that doesn't put increased stress on people who can least afford to pay."

July 30, 2008.  Paterson's Speech Already Causing Albany Scramble. New York magazine.

July 30, 2008.  Hoping for a Millionaire's Tax in a Bad Budget Year. By Azi Paybarah for the New York Observer's Politicker.

July 30, 2008.  The Gov's Fine Talk. An editorial from the New York Post.

July 30, 2008.  Home health aide union steps up campaign. 1199 SEIU intends to strike if contracts are not ratified with 25 area home care agencies by mid September, rally planned for Aug. 7. By Daniel Massey, crains.com.

July 29, 2008.  Governor Paterson's speech on the state's financial situation: outlook and commentary. On the Economy hosted by Bloomberg's Tom Keene.

July 29, 2008.  Recorded at Wall Street. German Public Radio.

July 29, 2008.  Valley officials await Paterson's proposals. By Craig Wolf, Poughkeepsie Journal.

Frank Mauro, executive director of the Fiscal Policy Institute, a nonpartisan group near Albany, said history offers some choices that can work.

One is the temporary surcharge on higher incomes that was used by New York in 2003, Mauro said. For three years, incomes over $150,000 and $500,000 paid extra in different degrees, helping the state through a crisis then.

The federal government should help states, Mauro said, because it can run a temporary deficit with less harm than if the states try it. This would prevent states from cutting spending and thus adding to recessionary pressure even as federal stimulus payments go out to try to combat recession. The federal government has helped with temporarily higher Medicaid matches and revenue sharing.

July 27, 2008.  Across the nation, IBM leaves a trail of broken promises: Big Blue takes public benefits, but cuts jobs, underdelivers. By Christine Young, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

July 24, 2008.  MainStreet Explains: Small Businesses and the Minimum Wage Hike. By Lyneka Little, mainstreet.com.

July 23, 2008.  Report urges hike in minimum wage. THINK TANK: New York needs to take steps to restore purchasing power of workers' pay. By Tom Wanamaker, Watertown Daily Times. Also in the Catskill Daily Mail and the Hudson Register-Star.

July 21, 2008.  The City Economy: Facing the Nation's Woes. By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.

July 21, 2008.  Where the City Can Find $200 Million. By Dan Cantor, Gotham Gazette.

July 18, 2008.  $7.15 still not enough. An editorial from the Albany Times Union. Reprinted in a sampling of upstate editorials, AM New York.

July 18, 2008.  State delves into health-care coverage issue. By Barbara Pinckney, Buffalo Business First. (Also ran in Albany Business Review.)

July 17, 2008.  Jobless rate jumps, Wall Street layoffs hit: As the economic landscape continues to worsen, the city's unemployment rate hit 5.4% in June; the jobless rate is expected to continue its climb in the months ahead. By Daniel Massey, Crain's newyorkbusiness.com.

July 13, 2008.  Little done to fix Empire Zone tax program: Legislature fails to approve reforms. Tax Department denied benefits only to 7. By Mike McAndrew, Syracuse Post-Standard.

July 11, 2008.  Minimum Wage Increases Faster Than Median Wage. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times. This story is related to FPI's report Restoring the Purchasing Power of New York State's Minimum Wage.

July 3, 2008.  Drivers' Walkout Has Ripple Effect Across City. By Steven Greenhouse and Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

June 26, 2008.  Minimum-wage increase a win-lose proposition. An editorial from the Flint Journal in Michigan.

June 23, 2008.  Assembly Dems roll out fuel cost relief package. By Samantha Pawlak, Legislative Gazette.

June 21, 2008.  Oil shock reshaping NY business: Companies cut back use of cars, trucks; change routes to maximize efficiency. By Hilary Potkewitz, Crain's.

June 21, 2008.  'Hardship Gap' wider for NYS working families. By Tom Wanamaker, Catskill Daily Mail.

June 20, 2008.  Layoffs Show on New York Unemployment Rolls. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

June 16, 2008.  Arguments Against a Property Tax Cap. A segment on Capital Tonight with Brian Taffe of Capital News 9, joined by David Little, the Director of Governmental Affairs for the New York School Boards Association, and FPI executive director Frank Mauro.

June 16, 2008.  Connections: Helping hands are there when working poor reach out. By Mary Haupt, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin.

June 13, 2008.  Report says 'anemic' wages affect 5.7 million New Yorkers. By Jay Gallagher, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.

June 13, 2008.  Report: 3rd of NY families are hurting. By Jay Gallagher, Journal News.

June 13, 2008.  Report says many jobs fail to give economic security. By Jay Gallagher, Albany Times-Union.

June 13, 2008.  Wages of 30% of New Yorkers Do Not Cover Minimum Needs. Posted to the PULP Network blog by Gerry Norlander.

June 12, 2008.  Report: A third of New York working families are hurting. By Jay Gallagher, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin.

June 12, 2008.  Report: NY Families Hurting. By Sarah Sheridan, WENY-TV (Elmira).

June 12, 2008.  Report: Third of New Yorkers can't afford basic expenses. By Jay Gallagher, Poughkeepsie Journal.

June 12, 2008.  Report: A third of NY working families are hurting. By Jay Gallagher, Ithaca Journal.

June 9, 2008.  Carried Interest Debate Carried to Albany. By Christopher Faille, HedgeWorld.com.

June 6, 2008.  Emergency Food Programs Feed Brooklyn's Hungry. By Eleanor J. Bader, The Brooklyn Rail.

June 5, 2008.  Report: Low-wage workers gain most from organizing. By Lance Howland, New York Teacher.

June 4, 2008.  Paterson to propose school property tax cap. By Bob Conner, Schenectady Gazette.

June 3, 2008.  Cap called key to tax relief. By Rick Karlin, Albany Times Union.

June 2, 2008.  Hearing on property tax cap today; Suozzi releases anticipated report. By Maria Brandecker, www.legislativegazette.com.

May 29, 2008.  Community Development Done Right. A column by David Dyssegaard Kallick, New York Metro.

May 28, 2008.  New Legislation Aimed at Creating New Jobs, Affordable Housing. NewsLI.com.

May 28, 2008.  For the record. Unionization translates to higher wages for low-wage workers, according to a joint report released May 15 by New York's Fiscal Policy Institute and the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C. The Chief-Leader.

May 27, 2008.  Tax cap report, though late, still stirring debate. By Maria Brandecker, Legislative Gazette.

May 24, 2008.  Property-tax cap on the table: Plan faces tough fight in Legislature. By Paul Brooks, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

May 23, 2008.  Rocklanders hear and discuss plans for a state tax-decrease program. By Steve Lieberman, Journal News.

May 22, 2008.  Report blasts tax-cap idea. By Jay Gallagher, Journal News.

May 22, 2008.  Property Tax Commission Report Due June 3rd. From EcuProphets,  "weblog of the New York State ecumenical community committed to peace and justice."

May 21, 2008.  Tax cap talk. By Rick Karlin, Times Union Capitol Confidential.

May 21, 2008.  How bad will NYC's economy get? History has some answers. By Garrett Sloane, am New York.

May 20, 2008.  Plan would cap property tax hikes: Proposal is one of several recommendations from state commission to be presented June 3. By Jim Odato, Albany Times Union.

May 20, 2008.  Learn about 'circuit breaker' bill to zap property tax burden. An op ed by Irv Feiner, Journal News.

May 18, 2008.  Rockland state legislators to host forum on tax relief proposal. By Sarah Netter, Journal News.

May 18, 2008.  State Development Agency Buffeted by Slowing Economy and Internal Rifts. By Charles Bagli, New York Times.

May 16, 2008.  Groups Want to Link State Aid and "Living Wage." Syracuse Post-Standard.

May 15, 2008.  Report: Low-wage union workers get 16% more. A new study shows that unionized workers in the lowest wage brackets in New York state earn 16% more than non-union workers with similar education. By Daniel Massey, Crain's.

May 14, 2008.  Wage dispute stalls nonprofits' tax-free financing. By Jay Gallagher, Journal News. Also, Institutes may lose IDA aid, Poughkeepsie Journal.

May 14, 2008.  Albany stalemate over low-interest IDA funding delays WNY projects. By Tom Precious, Buffalo News.

May 14, 2008.  Groups: Allow IDAs to help nonprofits. By Bob Conner, Schenectady Daily Gazette.

May 13, 2008.  Homeowners might get help: Proposal aims at taxes. By Paul Brooks, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

May 13, 2008.  Not For Profits Want IDA Law Renewed. By Karen DeWitt, WXXI.

"We're not talking about extraordinarily high wage standards here. We're talking about a living wage level." - James Parrott.

May 12, 2008.  Democrats See Green to Close Budget Gap in Hedge Fund Tax: Proposal strongly supported despite opposition from Bloomberg and Paterson. By Rachel Breitman, City Hall News.

May 9, 2008.  NY mayor says Hudson Yards property deal "not dead." By Joan Gralla, Reuters. Also on WAMC (Albany), WNED (Buffalo), WXXI (Rochester), WRVO (Syracuse), and WSKG (Binghamton).

May 6, 2008.  Gillibrand backs alternative funding for schools. By Maury Thompson, Glens Falls Post Star.

May 5, 2008.  How Tax Circuit Breaker Would Affect Your Budget. By Delen Goldberg, Syracuse Post-Standard. Also in the Post-Standard: How would a tax "circuit breaker" affect you? Use our calculator. By Douglass Dowty.

Wouldn't it be nice if there were a mechanism to keep your property taxes in line with your income? Proposed bill would cap property taxes based on homeowner's annual income. About 340,000 upstaters could benefit.

May 4, 2008.  Cash-sucking machines. An editorial from Newsday.

May 3, 2008.  Property tax burden takes center stage in speech by fiscal expert. By Hank Gross, Kingston Daily Freeman.

May 3, 2008.  Hearing Examines Immigrants' Contributions to the Economy. By Donna Lamb, Greenwich Village Gazette.

May 2, 2008.  The problem with property taxes discussed. Mid-Hudson News.

April 29, 2008.  PILOT would just subsidize resort. An op ed by John K. Mullen, a professor of economics and finance at Clarkson University, in the Adirondack Daily Enterprise.

April 28, 2008.  History Hints a Recession Would Hit City Hard. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

April 28, 2008.  Real Estate Slump Hits New York. By Steve Josselson, Gotham Gazette.

April 21, 2008.  New Jersey town offers immigration insights. A column by FPI senior fellow David Dyssegaard Kallick, Newsday.

April 20, 2008.  Never mind the crunch, Wall Street rich get richer. By Dominic Rushe, London Sunday Times.

April 18, 2008.  A Hotbed of Sins, Old or New. By Clyde Haberman, New York Times.

Social inequality and injustice form another sin. A glance around the city and the state makes the point quickly enough.

Underlining that reality is a new study by an Albany-based research group, the Fiscal Policy Institute. It shows that the gap between rich and poor in New York State keeps widening. A chasm is more like it. In the late 1980s, the study said, families in the top 20 percent of earners made about seven times as much as those in the bottom 20 percent. By the middle of this decade, they were making about nine times as much.

April 18, 2008.  New York City May Consider Taxing Carried Interest. By Christopher Faille, HedgeWorld.com.

April 17, 2008.  Think tank proposes NYC tax on carry. By Amanda Janis, Private Equity Online.

April 17, 2008.  The NY Tax Proposal: Pushing More Hedgies to Greenwich? Posted by Shasha Daid, Deal Journal Blog, Wall Street Journal.

April 16, 2008.  Businesses Could Leave City Under New Tax, Opponents Warn. By Benjamin Sarlin, New York Sun.

April 16, 2008.  Council Members Push for Hedge Fund Tax. WNYC.

April 16, 2008.  Big Apple May Go For Bigger Hedge Fund Tax. FINalternatives - Hedge Fund & Private Equity News.

April 16, 2008.  Pols call for hedge fund taxation. Bloomberg, New York Metro.

New York - Six New York City Council members endorsed a proposal to extend the city's tax on unincorporated businesses to include private equity and hedge fund managers, saying it would raise as much as $225 million.

The lawmakers joined with janitors representing the Service Employees International Union, members of the Working Families Party and the laborfunded Fiscal Policy Institute to call for the taxation of performance fees managers take.

April 15, 2008.  Plenty of wheeling and dealing. By Stan Bergstein, Daily Racing Form.

April 15, 2008.  NYC hedge fund profits show tax system flaw -study. By Joan Gralla, Reuters.

April 15, 2008.  City council members endorse plan to extend taxes on hedge fund earnings. Daily News (Bloomberg).

April 15, 2008.  A Taxing Debate Gets New Life. Deal Book Blog, edited by Andrew Ross Sorkin of the New York Times.

April 15, 2008.  City, State Eye New Taxes on Hedge Fund Managers. By Jacob Gershman, New York Sun.

April 14, 2008.  Foreclosure Moratorium Bill Gains Traction in Both Houses: Padavan and Brennan say time is right for Legislature to tackle sub-prime crisis. By Rachel Breitman, City Hall News.

April 11, 2008.  Budgeting in Albany in Hard Times. By Clyde Haberman, New York Times.

April 11, 2008.  Lighter Tax Burdens - Panel: Circuit breaker, exemptions may relieve property costs. By John Mariani, Syracuse Post-Standard.

April 11, 2008.  Gap Between Rich & Poor in NY Grows Wider. Reported by Dave Lucas for WAMC.

April 11, 2008.  Rich Get Richer, Poor Get Poorer in New York State, Study Finds. PND-Philanthropy News Digest.

April 10, 2008.  Legislators Back Spending Rise in State's Budget. By Jeremy W. Peters, New York Times.

April 10, 2008.  An Agent of Change in an Age of Chaos. A podcast by Sam Roberts, New York Times. In a tribute to Barry Gottehrer, Sam alludes to FPI's recent report, Pulling Apart, to show that problems facing the city - unmasked more than forty years ago by Gottehrer's award-winning reporting for the Herald Tribune - still persist today despite greater public order.

April 10, 2008.  Gap between rich, poor families in state still widest in nation. By James Schlett, Schenectady Daily Gazette.

April 10, 2008.  Fair wage engenders basic human dignity. An op ed by C. Melissa Snarr, Pd.D., in the Nashville Tennessean.

April 9, 2008.  Study Finds Third of City's Income on the Top Rung. By Jennifer 8. Lee, City Room Blog (New York Times).

April 9, 2008.  Gap widens between state's wealthy, poor. By Eric Anderson, The Buzz: Business News Blog (Albany Times Union).

April 9, 2008.  Report: NY's lowest-paid worker's wages increase faster than average. AP, Plattsburgh Press-Republican. Also on WHAM-TV and R News in Rochester; WSYR-TV and WSTM-TV in Syracuse; WNYT-TV and WXXA - FOX23 in Albany; News Channel 34 in Binghamton; WETM-TV in Elmira; WWTI/Newswatch 50 in Watertown; and WCAX in Burlington, VT.

April 3, 2008.  $600M Concord package won't be in state budget. By Victor Whitman, Middletown Times Herald-Record.

April 3, 2008.  NY Labor Unions Helping Fulfill MLK's Dream of Equality. John Robinson/Don Mathisen, Public News Service - NY. Also ran in Tennessee.

April 1, 2008.  Is America becoming a lottery society? An op ed by FPI senior fellow David Dyssegaard Kallick, New York Metro.

March 31, 2008.  Bill would repeal mortgage tax. By Adam Pincus, The Real Deal.

March 31, 2008.  Global, national factors put squeeze on consumers. By Keiko Morris, Newsday.

March 30, 2008.  A state budget built on hope: Increased spending plan relies on revenues that may not materialize. By Jim Odato, Albany Times Union.

March 28, 2008.  Job Total Dips in State, but the City Gains a Bit. By Patrick McGeehan, New York Times.

March 27, 2008.  What the state budget means for upstate families. Reported by Jasmyn Belcher for WVRO Oswego.

March 27, 2007.  Lobbyists push for tax increases to offset budget shortfall. By Valerie Bauman, Newsday.

March 27, 2008.  Coalition of New York Groups Calls For Higher Income Tax on Millionaires. By Gerald B. Silverman, BNA's Daily Tax Report.

March 27, 2008.  Schenectady feeling the budget pinch. Reported by Britt Godshalk for Capital News 9.

March 27, 2008.  Job cuts shake Wall Street nerves. By Dumeetha Luthra, BBC News.

March 26, 2008.  Multistate Business Tax Ruling Will Help New York's Bottom Line. By David Pomerantz, New York Sun.

March 26, 2008.  Don't break promise of school aid. An op ed by Rosemary Rivera of the Alliance for Quality Education, Rochester Democrat & Chronicle.

March 26, 2008.  Good government groups will analyze the state budget for the public. By Delen Goldberg, Syracuse Post-Standard.

March 23, 2008.  $4.9M hole in budget for '08: Lawmakers have tough task. By Sara Foss, Schenectady Daily Gazette.

March 20, 2008.  Great address, near Capitol, tax advantages: Empire Zone status offers businesses breaks just blocks from power. By Rick Karlin, Albany Times Union.

March 19, 2008.  Ten Reasons We Don't Have the Economy We Thought We Had. By James Parrott, Gotham Gazette.

March 17, 2008.  And Now: The Paterson Administration. By Courtney Gross and Gail Robinson, Gotham Gazette.

March 14, 2008.  State must work to fix property tax problem. By FPI senior economist Trudi Renwick, The Saratogian.

March 9, 2008.  Film Study Misinterpreted. By FPI deputy director and chief economist James A. Parrott, The Hartford Courant.

March 7, 2008.  New York Assembly Democrats Considering Higher Income Tax on Wealthy. By John Buhl, State Tax Notes from Tax Analysts.

March 7, 2008.  Meeting explores options for property-tax reform. By Christine Pizzuti, Poughkeepsie Journal.

March 6, 2008.  Assembly Plan Would Add to Taxes of More Affluent. By Jeremy W. Peters, New York Times.

March 6, 2008.  Immigrant issues growing in county. By Fritz Mayer, Narrowsburg River Reporter.

February 29, 2008.  What's wrong with the CGR critique of prevailing wage requirements. By FPI deputy director and chief economist James A. Parrott, Long Island Business News.

February 28, 2008.  Watchdog groups to address state spending: Some want redesign of N.Y. tax structure. By Brian Liberatore, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin.

February 27, 2008.  Economists warn of worsening sub-prime loan problem in N.Y. By Jay Gallagher, Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin. Also in the Poughkeepsie Journal.

February 22, 2008.  Bush budget stiffs New York: report. President George Bush's 2009 budget could cost New York State $1.7 billion in federal support, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute. By Tommy Fernandez, Crain's New York Business.

February 21, 2008.  There's a way to restore aid to education. Commentary by Rod Watson, Buffalo News.

The Fiscal Policy Institute has an easy remedy for Gov. Eliot L. Spitzer's decision to trim aid increases he promised schools as part of a four-year plan. The institute calculates that the slowdown would cost Buffalo $5.6 million. That's a lot of teachers, books and other necessities in a district with lots of poor students - in both senses of the word.

The answer: temporarily increasing the top income tax rates on the state's highest earners, as the Legislature did in 2003 when it passed a three-year surcharge over the veto of then-Gov. George E. Pataki.

Granted, it's a radical notion, expecting those with the most to help those with the least.

But Frank Mauro, institute executive director, recalled Pataki singing the same "sky will fall" song the well-off always sing when we talk about helping poor kids. The threat was that raising taxes on those who benefit most would slow the economy and make people flee the state.

"Neither of those things happened," Mauro said at last weekend's New York State Association of Black & Puerto Rican Legislators conference in Albany.

...

Beyond dealing with the current problem, Mauro said, a permanent surcharge on the highest earners also would reduce property tax pressures on low-and middle-income homeowners. That would be a permanent benefit.

February 20, 2008.  New York to lose $1.7 billion in Bush's new budget. By Irene Liu, Capitol Confidential.

February 15, 2008.  Education advocates criticize Spitzer. By Dan Osburn, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. Also in the Journal News, the Elmira Star-Gazette, and the Ithaca Journal.

February 15, 2008.  Time to short-circuit excessive spending. An editorial from the Glens Falls Post-Star.

The non-partisan Fiscal Policy Institute endorsed the circuit breaker concept as a mechanism for temporary tax relief. But in doing so, it also called on the state to stop shifting the tax burden to local governments and to enact systematic changes in fiscal policy to correct what created the high taxes.

February 14, 2008.  Education advocates: Spitzer backing off funding pledge. By Dan Osburn, Elmira Star-Gazette. Also in the Binghamton Press and Sun-Bulletin and the Poughkeepsie Journal.

February 14, 2008.  Griffo cosponsors legislation to cap property taxes for homeowners. Rome Observer.

February 12, 2008.  Study Sees Non-Hispanic Whites Shrinking to Minority Status in U.S. By Sarah Garland, New York Sun.

February 11, 2008.  New kind of property tax cap suggested. By Maria Brandecker, Legislative Gazette.

February 11, 2008.  'Circuit breaker' program may ease taxes. By Maury Thompson, Glens Falls Post-Star.

February 11, 2008.  Griffo boosts bill to limit property taxes based on homeowner income. Rome Sentinel.

February 10, 2008.  Fears of recession for nation, Long Island worsen. By Randi F. Marshall, Newsday.

February 7, 2008.  Empire Zone board shake up: Changes prompted in part by citizen activist. By Fritz Mayer, Narrowsburg River Reporter.

February 7, 2008.  Little pushes bill to cap property taxes. By Heather Sackett, Adirondack Daily Enterprise.

February 6, 2008.  Catholic Charities to host N.Y. budget, economy briefing. Elmira Star-Gazette.

February 5, 2008.  Plan to link tax breaks to income: Lawmakers propose "circuit breaker" that gives rebates to those who need it most. By Rick Karlin, Albany Times Union.

February 5, 2008.  N.Y. lawmakers have plan to limit property taxes. By Jay Gallagher, Gannett News Service. Also in the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, the Journal News, the Poughkeepsie Journal, and the Ithaca Journal.

February 5, 2008.  Lawmakers plan to limit property tax rebates. By James T. Madore, Newsday.

February 5, 2008.  Little property tax bill gets support. By Maury Thompson, Glens Falls Post-Star.

February 4, 2008.  Lawmakers Offer New Property Tax Relief Proposal. Reported by Walt McClure, WXXA Fox News 23 Albany.

February 4, 2008.  Galef, Little Bill Would Tie Property Taxes to Income: Legislation gains support of tax groups, Fiscal Policy Institute. Press Release, Office of Assemblywoman Sandy Galef.

February 4, 2008.  The Stench of '89: The last great New York recession was prolonged and deep. And it's eerily familiar. By Michael Idov, New York Magazine.

February 4, 2008.  Real Estate Round-Up. By Jacqui Ryan, Brooklyn Eagle.

February 1, 2008.  City Economy Hinges on Multiple Factors: At Jobs Forum, Panelists Disagree About How Deep Slowdown Will Be. NYC Workforce Weekly.

October 1996.  The 6 1/4 Cent Solution. A proposal to reinstitute the stock transfer tax by James Bradley, City Limits.