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Inequality in New York & Options for Progressive Tax Reform

View and Download PDF November 10, 2022 KEY FINDINGS: A new report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) finds that New York State is home to the highest concentration of extreme wealth in the United States. New York State also has the greatest income inequality in the United States. In order to understand inequality, we need to look at both income and wealth. By both of these measures, New York is the most unequal state in the nation. New Yorkers [...]

Anthony Troia2022-12-21T14:09:55-05:00November 9th, 2022|Blog, Must Read, NYS Budget, NYS Tax Policy, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

FPI Testifies to NYS Senate on Fines and Fees

FPI's Chief Economist, Jonas Shaende, was invited to testify before the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Codes and the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Crime Victims, Crime, and Corrections. Dr. Shaende spoke in support of the proposed S.3979C (Salazar)/A.2348B (Niou), the End Predatory Court Fees Act. Testimony: Full Text

Jonas Shaende2021-10-29T14:49:28-04:00October 29th, 2021|Blog, Local Tax & Budget Policy, Statements & Public Testimony , Testimony|

Local Governments Across New York State Must Re‐examine Fine and Fee Revenue

Many local governments across New York State ‐ particularly small town and village governments ‐ rely on fine and fee revenue as part of their annual budget, with more than 30 towns and villages having a reliance of ten percent or greater on this type of revenue. Much of it is generated through Justice Courts which have jurisdiction over vehicle and traffic violations, evictions, small claims, and certain criminal offenses. Click here to read the full report: Local Governments Across New York State Must Re‐examine [...]

Jonas Shaende2021-08-31T21:11:42-04:00August 31st, 2021|Fact Sheets, Local Tax & Budget Policy|

Economy Shows Improvement, but Employment Needs Time to Recover

Read the full report here: Economy Shows Improvement, but Employment Needs Time to Recover Several measures show signs of gradual improvement for New York residents as the state emerges from the covid-19 recession. One such indicator is the steep decline of new unemployment insurance claims, which had recently peaked in winter this year. Another such positive indicator is the continued gradual decrease in the statewide unemployment (U-3) rate, which peaked at 16.2 in April of 2020 as a result of pandemic-induced layoffs and business closures. The [...]

Anthony Troia2021-06-10T11:04:49-04:00June 10th, 2021|Economic Trends & Policy, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

New York State Fines and Fees Revenue Lacks Transparency, Obscures Economic Harms

New York State relies on fine, fee, and surcharge revenue to fund government operations- including the functions of the courts and state agencies providing criminal justice, public safety, and victim services. This funding is generated via a complex set of state statutes, including penal, vehicle and traffic, environmental conservation, judiciary, and finance laws and is spent through the General Fund and a bevy of State Special Revenue Funds. No one state government entity or agency is charged with comprehensively reporting on the imposition, collection, and [...]

Anthony Troia2021-05-12T10:03:03-04:00May 10th, 2021|Creating Vibrant Communities, Good Governance, Local Tax & Budget Policy, Must Read, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

FPI Testifies to Congress on Immigrant Businesses and Economic Recovery

The director of FPI's Immigration Research Initiative, David Dyssegaard Kallick, was invited to testify before the Congressional Small Business Committee about the role of immigrant businesses in the economic recovery after Covid. Kallick talked about two recovery scenarios: A Main Street-centered rebuilding that picks up on some innovations from the Covid period such as outdoor restaurants, expanded pedestrian areas, and bike paths that have transformed many downtowns and urban centers in very positive ways. This scenario would entail Main Streets as vibrant places where people [...]

david2021-04-30T11:30:24-04:00April 30th, 2021|Blog, Immigration, Other States & National, Testimony|

State and Local Employment in New York, Cut in the Pandemic, Has Been Down for a Decade

Read the full report here: State and Local Employment in New York, Cut in the Pandemic, Has Been Down for a Decade State and local government employment is vital to our economy and our quality of life. State and local governments—and their employees—exist because New Yorkers have decided over generations that we need people who are dedicated and trained to teach our children, clean our streets, protect our communities, maintain our highways and bridges, and perform hundreds of other jobs. The number of public employees [...]

Anthony Troia2021-04-21T15:53:19-04:00April 21st, 2021|Economic Trends & Policy, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Policy & Research, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

Domestic Workers are Essential Workers: By the Numbers in New York

Download the full report: "Domestic Workers Are Essential Workers: By the Numbers in New York" Throughout the coronavirus crisis domestic workers have been placed under a double pressure. Already underpaid, many have lost their jobs, or lost hours on the job, putting them under added financial stress. Even when on the job, however, domestic workers find themselves under added physical and psychological stress, acting as essential workers during a pandemic at some risk to their own health as they protect the health of others. Domestic [...]

Anthony Troia2021-04-12T08:05:19-04:00April 12th, 2021|Health Care, Immigration, New York State, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

Domestic Workers in New York: By the Numbers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 12, 2021 Contact: Shamier Settle, ssettle@fiscalpolicy.org, 347-834-5760 Domestic Workers are Essential Workers: By the Numbers in New York Domestic Workers are Essential to our Economy and will be highlighted in Biden Infrastructure Plan Read the report: “Domestic Workers are Essential Workers: By the Numbers in New York” (Albany, NY) –Domestic workers are doing the intense and intimate labor of caring for our families and our households. As the fallout of the global pandemic has made clear, they are essential to our [...]

Anthony Troia2021-04-12T08:27:50-04:00April 12th, 2021|Immigration, New York State, Press Releases|

Fact Sheet: Black New York Workers Have Been Hit Hard By The Pandemic Statewide

THE COVID‐19 PANDEMIC HAD AN UNPRECEDENTED EFFECT ON THE JOBS AND INCOMES OF NEW YORK STATE RESIDENTS, in addition to upending social norms and taking the lives of thousands. However, the pandemic’s burden was not evenly distributed across our population. The Fiscal Policy Institute found that Black workers statewide, who already had a higher rate of unemployment prior to the pandemic, experienced even greater losses. Our first analysis compares the employment measures among Black New Yorkers between March to November 2019 and March to November [...]

Anthony Troia2021-03-25T12:15:18-04:00March 24th, 2021|Economic Outlook, Economic Trends & Policy, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Fact Sheets, Good Governance, NYS Budget|

Fact Sheet: New York State Must Invest in Not‐for‐Profit Service Providers to Protect New Yorkers and Advance Equity

The Social Assistance subsector includes workers who provide direct and vital social assistance services to consumers, including vulnerable and at-risk populations and communities. It consists of the following industry groups: Individual and Family Services; Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services; Vocational Rehabilitation Services; Child Day Care Services.1 In 2019, there were nearly 380,000 people estimated to be employed in New York’s social assistance subsector by not-for-profit, government, and private employers, 133,000 of whom (35 percent) were employed by not-for-profits. In New York State, total not-for-profit employment is largest in the Individual and Family Services and Child and Day [...]

Anthony Troia2021-03-24T12:47:48-04:00March 22nd, 2021|Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Fact Sheets, Good Governance, NYS Budget, Tax & Budget|

Unemployment Compensation for Excluded Workers: $3.5 Billion Needed for 2020 and 2021

The New York State Assembly and Senate both support creating a fund to provide unemployment insurance to workers who are excluded from the unemployment insurance system, primarily undocumented immigrants and people leaving incarceration during the Covid-19 pandemic. Both houses included $2.1 billion in their one-house budgets this week, the starting points for negotiating the final state budget. This is an impressive commitment to a critical priority. However, matching the minimum level of benefits that other unemployed New Yorkers receive and extending the aid through the [...]

Anthony Troia2021-03-18T07:28:43-04:00March 17th, 2021|Blog, Immigration, New York State, NYS Budget, NYS Tax Policy, Reports, Briefs and Presentations, Tax & Budget|

“Legislature Supports $2.1 Billion in Aid to Excluded Workers; Report Shows $3.5 is Needed”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 18, 2021 Media Contact: communications@fiscalpolicy.org, 518-786-3156 “Legislature Supports $2.1 Billion in Aid to Excluded Workers; Report Shows $3.5 is Needed” Read FPI’s report: Unemployment Compensation for Excluded Workers: $3.5 Billion Needed for 2020 and 2021 (Albany, NY) – New York State may be on the brink of providing unemployment benefits to workers who are currently excluded from the state’s unemployment insurance fund. The New York State Assembly and Senate both support a fund of $2.1 billion to extend benefits to undocumented [...]

Anthony Troia2021-03-31T14:53:18-04:00March 17th, 2021|Immigration, New York State, NYS Budget, NYS Tax Policy, Press Releases, Tax & Budget|

Fiscal Policy Institute on One-House Budgets

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 15, 2021 Media Contact: communications@fiscalpolicy.org, 518-786-3156 Fiscal Policy Institute on One-House Budgets (Albany, NY) Today the New York State Senate and Assembly released their one-house budgets as New York continues grappling with the pandemic. With the annual April 1st deadline fast approaching, today’s action sustains hope for a responsive budget process that can meet all New Yorkers' needs. The Legislature’s proposals recognize the need for support to ensure all New Yorkers can live, work, access health care, and receive a sound education. With the pandemic underscoring how [...]

Anthony Troia2021-03-31T14:53:11-04:00March 15th, 2021|Good Governance, NYS Budget, NYS Tax Policy, Press Releases, Statements & Public Testimony , Tax & Budget|

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021: New York’s Share of the Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Fund

Read the full report: The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021: New York’s Share of the Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Fund The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 includes $350 billion in aid for states, territories, and tribal governments for the purpose of alleviating the fiscal stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Of the $350 billion, $195.3 billion is allocated for payments to states, $130.2 billion for city and county governments, $20 billion for tribal governments, and $4.5 billion for territories. These coronavirus fiscal recovery funds [...]

Anthony Troia2021-04-08T16:09:19-04:00March 12th, 2021|Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Federal Taxes & Budget Policy, Local Tax & Budget Policy, Must Read, NYS Budget, Policy & Research, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|