Policy & Research

Public Testimony Integral to New York’s State Budget Process

New York State’s constitution requires the governor to provide the state legislature with a yearly balanced budget proposal including the necessary appropriation bills and legislation. The Legislature reviews the proposed executive budget and offers changes or modifications and enacts the state budget. As is customary, Governor Cuomo presented his proposed Executive Budget for FY 21-22 in January which was followed by a review and analysis from both legislative houses. The Assembly Ways and Means Committee’s Review and Analysis of the 2021-22 Executive Budget is known [...]

Anthony Troia2021-02-23T16:26:23-05:00February 23rd, 2021|Blog, State Budget, Tax & Budget, Tax Policy, Testimony|

Economists Push Biden On Path To Citizenship For Undocumented Immigrants

FPI joined a letter from economists urging the Biden Administration this week to include a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants in upcoming legislation. The letter highlighted that such an action would benefit the nation as a whole. Benefits would include increasing jobs, productivity, boost wages, and tax revenue. The group of more than 60 signatories includes former Obama economic advisor Jason Furman, Eileen Appelbaum of the Center for Economic and Policy Research and David Kallick of the Fiscal Policy Institute. Read the Forbes article [...]

Anthony Troia2021-03-16T16:24:20-04:00February 12th, 2021|Economic Trends & Policy, FPI in the News, Labor Market & Workforce, Migration|

Biden Urged to Legalize Migrants as Part of Infrastructure Plan

FPI joined with more than 60 economists to urge President Biden to create a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants in the soon-to-be-released economic and infrastructure plan. Such an action not only benefits those individuals, but the experts also explain that this action would help our economy by raising wages and increasing productivity and tax revenue. The economists, including President Barack Obama’s former top economist Jason Furman and David Kallick of the Fiscal Policy Institute, which champions liberal economic policies, made the proposal in a [...]

Anthony Troia2021-04-06T09:56:44-04:00February 12th, 2021|Economic Trends & Policy, FPI in the News, Migration|

After the Applause: Legal Status for Essential Workers

In the throes of the Covid-19 pandemic last spring, Americans embraced a new concept: Essential Workers. In many areas, we applauded for them every night at 7pm: they kept us going through this difficult period, and we knew they were taking a risk to their own health in doing it. We also knew that many of those workers are undocumented. In recognition of the service they provided to this country during a time of crisis, congress and the president should act today to give those [...]

Anthony Troia2021-02-12T16:14:55-05:00February 12th, 2021|Blog, Migration|

Memo of Support: S.537/A.2533 (EITC)

Memorandum of Support S.537 (Kaplan)/A.2533 (Fahy) Provides for the advance payment of the earned income tax credit to qualifying employees. The Fiscal Policy Institute (FPI) supports S.537/A.2533 to help create a more equitable state tax code for working New Yorkers. This legislation would update New York State’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) to address the economic needs of New York State residents who work part-time and who work for low wages. Throughout the state, hundreds of thousands of workers are unable to claim the credit due to exclusions in the [...]

Anthony Troia2021-02-10T20:18:39-05:00February 10th, 2021|Tax & Budget, Tax Policy|

NYS Enhanced Services for Refugees: Now Is the Time to Expand

The New York State Enhanced Services to Refugees Program (NYSESRP) began in 2017 as a response to the federal government’s retreat from refugee resettlement. New York State was first in the nation to provide state funding to support refugee integration, a valuable investment in the refugees and asylees who call New York home. New York for Refugees—a coalition of refugee serving agencies, the Fiscal Policy Institute and the New York Immigration Coalition—seeks $5 million in the 2021 budget to expand NYSESRP and grow support for [...]

Anthony Troia2021-02-10T18:17:16-05:00February 10th, 2021|Blog, Migration|

New York’s Pandemic State Budget: Recovering and Reimagining

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 10, 2021 Media Contact: communications@fiscalpolicy.org, 518-786-3156 ***VIDEO link below*** New York's Pandemic State Budget: Recovering and Reimagining Fiscal Policy Institute's Recommendations for the FY 2022 State Budget Read the report: "Economic and Fiscal Outlook 2022: New York Recovering and Reimagining" Watch the video: Fiscal Policy Institute's Annual State Budget Presentation 2021 (Albany, NY) Today the Fiscal Policy Institute (FPI) released a 30-minute video highlighting its report "New York State's Pandemic Budget: Recovering and Reimagining." FPI urges a bold vision in crafting the FY [...]

Anthony Troia2021-06-29T14:44:56-04:00February 9th, 2021|Must Read, Press Releases, Reports, Briefs and Presentations, State Budget, Tax & Budget, Tax Policy|

FPI’s Presentation on the Proposed Executive Budget for FY 2022

Our state budget helps determine the future for every New Yorker. This year the stakes are exceptionally high as the pandemic continues to imperil our health and financial well-being. Will the choices we make crafting our state budget reduce inequality, or will the gap continue to widen? FPI took a look at the proposed New York State Executive Budget and offered actions to create a more just New York for all. Watch our 30-minute video overview and read the report "Economic and Fiscal Outlook 2022: New York Recovering and Reimagining" to learn more. [...]

Anthony Troia2021-02-22T13:40:11-05:00February 8th, 2021|Must Read, Reports, Briefs and Presentations, State Budget, Tax Policy|

Military Coup in Myanmar Reverberates in California, Indiana, New York, and Texas

Over the past week, the military in Myanmar, the country also known as Burma, overthrew the democratically elected government and arrested the top civilian leaders. The United States state department condemned the action, saying “the military must reverse these actions immediately.” These actions are being watched closely, and in horror, by Burmese communities in the United States. To help understand what this means in Burmese communities in the United States, the Fiscal Policy Institute presents here data showing that of the 151,000 people born in [...]

Anthony Troia2021-02-05T14:24:49-05:00February 5th, 2021|Blog, Migration|

Concrete Gains for New Yorkers from Federal Immigration Proposal

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 1, 2021 Media Contact: communications@fiscalpolicy.org, 518-786-3156 Concrete Gains for New Yorkers from Federal Immigration Proposal Removing Barriers for Immigrants Boosts Earnings and Tax Revenue Read the report: A Pathway to Citizenship: Doing Well by Doing Good (Albany, NY) A new report by the Fiscal Policy Institute (FPI) in conjunction with the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) shows the ways New York State would benefit if undocumented immigrants could gain work authorization and apply for citizenship, as is being proposed [...]

Anthony Troia2021-03-31T14:53:36-04:00February 1st, 2021|Migration, Press Releases|

Arts Central to New York City’s Recovery

As New York looks to restart our economic engine after the pandemic, the arts and culture play a critical role, especially in New York City. Governor Cuomo underscored that connection in his State of the State and New York State budget announcements. "Cities are by definition centers of energy, entertainment, theatre, and cuisine. Without that activity and attraction, cities lose much of their appeal. What is a city without social, cultural, and creative synergies? New York City is not New York without Broadway.” The coronavirus [...]

Anthony Troia2021-01-19T12:19:29-05:00January 19th, 2021|Blog, Economic Trends & Policy, State Budget|

Long Island’s Immigrants are Integral for its Economic Recovery

County Executive Steve Bellone's editorial in the Long Island Press pointed out the contributions that immigrants make to the area, including the boost they provide to the economy. The Long Island immigrant community is a vital part of our workforce and economy as a whole, with more than half working in white-collar jobs as of 2015. Immigrants make up 18 percent of the combined population of Nassau and Suffolk counties, generating 20 percent of total economic output, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute. Learn more [...]

Anthony Troia2021-03-16T15:59:04-04:00January 3rd, 2021|Blog, Economic Trends & Policy, FPI in the News, Labor Market & Workforce, Migration|

Congressional COVID Relief Bill Offers New York Workers Some Needed Relief

New York State’s unemployed workers will soon see some relief from the federal coronavirus relief bill passed on December 21, 2020. The bill provides $300/week in enhanced unemployment compensation (FPUC). It also extends Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) for another 11 weeks. In October and November of 2020, New York’s unemployment rate stood at 10 percent, with over 800,000 unemployed workers. Those most impacted by layoffs include Black workers (at 14 percent unemployed) and Hispanic and Asian workers (both at 13 percent unemployed). Comparatively, 7 percent of white workers were unemployed. Immigrant workers, a category defined as [...]

Anthony Troia2020-12-30T14:27:01-05:00December 30th, 2020|Blog, Labor Market & Workforce|

Tax Revenue Keeps States Running

December 21, 2020 New York, like every other state, relies on tax revenue to provide stable funding for necessary public services. The COVID-19 pandemic has been particularly damaging to the state and local governments’ budgets as the necessary mitigation measures have continued to curtail business activity, which in turn depressed tax revenues. Among the most impacted industries are hospitality, tourism, and leisure sectors that employ many low-skilled and immigrant workers. When many workers permanently lose their jobs, the impact is both local and statewide. As [...]

Anthony Troia2020-12-30T09:41:16-05:00December 20th, 2020|Blog, Tax Policy|

Factsheet: Expiration of CARES Act Unemployment Benefits Will Harm New Yorkers and the Economy

Unemployment claims for the weeks ending December 5 and 12, 2020, are 23 percent higher than claims from the two prior weeks, November 21 and 28. Unemployment in New York State remains historically high, with initial claims for the week of December 12 rising by as much as 400 and 500 percent in some counties. The remaining enhanced unemployment insurance (UI) programs established under the CARES Act will expire on December 26, 2020. Over 1 million New Yorkers will lose benefits when Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) expire. These programs help workers who [...]

Anthony Troia2020-12-30T09:42:54-05:00December 18th, 2020|Fact Sheets, Labor Market & Workforce|