Increasing Driver License, Car Registration Fees Could Raise $550 Million for Cash-Starved MTA
December 1, 2008
So it’s “official,” our country has been in a recession since December, 2007, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research, which announced the non-news earlier this morning.
Of course, we already knew this to be true for many months. On November 20th, MTA CEO Elliot Sander told the MTA Board, that new economic forecasts show projected deficit gaps of “$383 million for 2008, $1.441 billion for 2009, $2.394 billion for 2010, and nearly $3 billion in 2012, before prior-year carryover or gap closing actions.”
As I’ve blogged before, I am very concerned about the fiscal outlook for the MTA and how cuts to services, capital projects, system maintenance, and increased user fees will impact riders. But the negative effects spillover beyond transit users. The MTA is the lifeblood of the New York metropolitan area and when it suffers, so does the regional economy.
On September 15th, the Citizens Budget Commission (CBC) testified before the Ravitch Commission and outlined a number of practical suggestions for how to increase dedicated mass transit revenue.
Today, I wrote to Governor Paterson to urge that two CBC proposals be included in his 2009 Executive budget: Raising car registration fees and driver license fees by at least $50 annually.
When CBC President Carol Kellermann testified before the Ravitch Commission she noted that today the cost for a driver license in New York is under $6 annually. Raising annual fees for driver licenses to $50 would yield nearly $300 million. New York has the 8th lowest vehicle registration fees in the country (according to the CBC’s 2006 study South Carolina has the lowest at $12, and Maine has the highest at $435), and raising the vehicle registration fees would net an additional annual revenue stream of $250 million.
With the Ravitch Commission’s report due to be released on Friday, now is the time to be examining all the options including this one and other good ideas like reinstituting the commuter tax.
Recently, New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. outlined a proposal to impose a weight-based transit-dedicated assessment of $100 for vehicles weighing 2,300 pounds or less, plus $.09 for every pound of curb weight over 2,300. This is an interesting idea that I believe merits further study. It differs from the CBC proposal which would see a flat fee increase for car registration fees.
In these tough financial times, I believe that it makes sense that those who choose to drive should help bear the costs of maintaining our public transportation infrastructure. These two new recurring revenue streams would constitute a good start in getting the MTA’s finances back on track.
In my letter, I suggested that during the first two to three years of this budget crisis, the MTA be given the flexibility it needs to put this revenue towards its operating deficit. But in the long term this money should be used for capital needs. After the third year I suggested that these recurring funds be dedicated 70% towards the MTA’s capital plan and 30% towards the NYS Department of Transportation Five Year Capital Plan - a fund which finances highway, tunnel, and bridge projects across the state.
I told the Governor that if these proposals were not included in the budget, I was prepared to introduce them as a separate piece of legislation. My letter to Governor Paterson can be found in the Publications area of my website.
Nothing to Hide: Financial Disclosure Laws for Lawmakers Should be More Transparent
September 18, 2008
A cynical observer might assume that the reason I am so nonchalant about handing over unredacted copies of my financial disclosure forms to anyone who asks, including the New York Sun, who published an article today that featured my doing so (“Taciturnity is the Word on Legislators’ Pay”) is that other than my public service as an Assembly Member, I have no other income. But the fact is that it is precisely because of my elected post that I don’t have any other income. Being a legislator is a full-time gig. Most of my colleagues treat it as a full-time job, and they should.
I was a little surprised that when the Sun called around, I was the only one to comply with their request, but I strongly suspect that if they had called more than just a few lawmakers, they would have received many more forthcoming replies.
As I said in that article, there is an unfair public perception that all lawmakers are crooks or clowns, and the high-profile scandals following the exposure of the occaisonal bad apple only heightens this carictature. But for the vast majority of legislators this is simply not the case, and being more transparent about their finances would demonstrate this. I will work in the next legislative year to improve the laws around transparency. The public deserves to know when lawmakers have other jobs and how much they make from them.
A little over a week ago, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver told the Associated Press that he would be taking steps to reform ethics and disclosure rules for lawmakers next year. When I next spoke to the Speaker, I made sure to tell him that I completely supported what he said and that I looked forward to working with him on legislation to accomplish good government reforms. I will continue to update you on our progress when the legislature goes back to session in January.
Taciturnity Is the Word On Legislators’ Pay
By JACOB GERSHMAN, Staff Reporter of the Sun | September 18, 2008
While other state lawmakers are accustomed to cloaking their financial secrets behind lax disclosure laws, Assemblyman Micah Kellner stands apart.
Unlike most of his Albany colleagues, the 29-year-old Democrat of the Upper East Side has no problem providing an unredacted review of his financial disclosure forms. Not that his forms disclose terribly much: The only income Mr. Kellner earns comes from his $79,500-a-year salary as a legislator.
“I guess I’m very poor,” he said. “It’s the most depressing day having to fill out these forms.”
Other lawmakers contacted by The New York Sun, including the four legislative leaders, were not so forthcoming, refusing to make available the full versions of their annual statements.
Under rules set up by lawmakers in the 1980s, they are permitted to conceal how much outside income they earn, a practice that is coming under increasing scrutiny.
Last week’s arrest of a Queens assemblyman, Anthony Seminerio, whom federal prosecutors accuse of accepting payoffs from hospital executives in exchange for lobbying his colleagues on budget matters, has again trained a spotlight on Albany’s disclosure laws. Critics say they are too weak, allowing lawmakers to hide business interests that could potentially conflict with their public duties.
Mr. Seminerio, who maintains his innocence, established a private consulting firm to sell his services. By law, he was not required to publicly disclose the nature of his business or how much outside income he earned.
In Albany, it’s hard to find a lawmaker defending the current system. In theory, most are supportive of stricter reporting requirements. Some, including Mr. Kellner, are pressing for new resolutions or legislation, saying the Seminerio arrest has undermined their credibility.
Mr. Kellner said he is concerned that the public has a perception that lawmakers are “crooks or clowns.” For the “vast majority of us, neither of those things is true,” he said, adding that by giving the public a fuller account of their outside work, lawmakers could better make that case.
In practice, few are willing to share information beyond what the law requires. Those who are so inclined say they fear such an act of transparency would alienate their less-forthcoming colleagues.
[Click here to read more…]
Supporting Film Production, Post-Production Industry in NYC
September 17, 2008
Bobby Cannavale, an Emmy-award winning actor of ‘Will and Grace’ fame, talks about the importance of the production and post-production film and television industries. Also pictured are myself at left, Assembly Member Jonathan Bing (center), and Councilmember David Yassky (right). Photo by William Alatriste.
I may be the only New York elected official with my own Internet Movie Database (IMDb) profile. I was proud to work in college on a 2000 film called Five Feet High and Rising, which was later turned into a feature film launching the career of the movie’s director, my friend Peter Sollett. I was so proud when New York’s production tax credit helped enable Peter to film the anticipated October release, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist in New York City. Film production located in New York City is tremendously important for our economy — but it is clear that we can and should be doing more to encourage production and post-production work.
Yesterday, I joined Councilmember David Yassky and my State legislative colleagues Assembly Members Jonathan Bing and Michael Gianaris and State Senator Martin Golden to call on the New York City Council to pass two bills introduced by Councilmember Yassky; one would expand the City’s film production tax credit and the other would create a new credit for post-production work. Our effort was reported on in today’s New York Sun.
Tax credits for the film and television industry are proven to bring jobs and help the local economy. Since New York State tripled its film production tax credit, heavy employment shooting days are up 84%. This means that more union actors have jobs. Screen Actors Guild officials say that a significant number of previously uninsured actors are now in union-sponsored healthcare programs because of the availability of these jobs in New York. According to the Mayor’s Office, the initial 5% tax credit that Councilmember Yassky achieved with his 2005 legislation has generated $600 million and over 6,000 new jobs for the City’s economy. His new production credit expansion legislation would triple this.
Equally important is post-production. As a film school graduate, I watched as many of my friends moved to Los Angeles because of a lack of jobs here in New York City. Particularly, in film and television post-production, most people don’t realize that most of the work that goes into making the movies and TV shows we love comes after the camera stops rolling — sound mixing and re-recording, foley artists, adding the track, digital effects, and more. The ripple effect of a post production tax credit encouraging that industry here would be a major boon to our local economy.
Councilmember Yassky’s post-production credit and a state-level credit (A.10689) proposed by Assemblymember Steve Englebright, which I co-sponsor, would stimulate the ripe field of post-production in New York City. New York has three major, state of the art post-production facilities, rivaling what Los Angeles has, but Los Angeles still wins 95% of all post-production jobs.
Joining us at yesterday’s press conference were actor Matt Servitto of The Sopranos, actress and writer Nancy Giles of CBS Sunday Morning and representatives from the Motion Picture Editors Guild, Screen Actors Guild, Writers Guild, Cinematography Guild, American Federation of Musicians, Theatrical Teamsters, IATSE and the Deluxe New York post-production facility.
Assembly Protects Health Care Funding, Schools in Budget Negotiations
August 22, 2008
As the nation’s economic picture worsens, New York has been faced with tough choices about how to keep our fiscal house in order. Earlier this week, the legislature went into special session to find ways to reduce public spending. After difficult negotiations, the Assembly passed a bill that would limit spending by more than $1 billion over the next year and half – reducing this year’s budget by $411 million and next year’s by $600 million. On Wednesday, the revised budget was finalized and signed by the Governor.
I am proud of the tough stance the Assembly took on property taxes. The “circuit breaker” approach what we passed represents real and immediate tax relief to working- and middle-class renters and homeowners, without damaging the fiscal stability of our schools. Maintaining funds for our schools, and holding the State to the task of living up to the principles of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity court decision were major priorities for me personally, and I was proud to work with my colleagues in holding to those principles during such a difficult time.
What’s a ‘circuit breaker’? A lot of people have been asking me that question especially since I was quoted in a New York Sun article on Tuesday, saying that I support that bill (A.11838) instead of a property tax cap. The video (put out by the New York State United Teachers - NYSUT) above gives a very short answer. The union, which represents New York State teachers, has a more complete FAQ on their website.
The Assembly fought hard to ensure that the revised budget avoided deeper cuts to core health care services, like Medicaid. But there is much about the cuts that were approved, like the reductions in premiums paid to insurers (and so ultimately to doctors), that concerns me greatly. I am also disappointed by the reduction of aid to the City University of New York (CUNY). And I was dismayed that funds for accessible polling stations were chopped.
The Governor issued this press release which gives an accounting of the cuts, which are largely across-the-board 6% spending reductions, with some important excceptions. Also, here is a link to a video of the press conference held by Governor Paterson, Assembly Speaker Silver, and other leaders of the Legislature after the budget was finalized.
Take Back Our Economy: Closing a Tax Loophole on Big Business
July 22, 2008
On July 17, over one thousand union members gathered in Manhattan, joining more than a dozen coordinated events worldwide, for a “Take Back the Economy” protest calling attention to preferential tax treatments for corporations and the mishandling and questionable ethics related to the investment of employee pension funds by private equity firms. The rally was organized by SEIU 1199, SEIU 32B-J, and the Working Families Party.
Over the last 30 years, our state’s tax code has been more and more tilted against middle-class New Yorkers and in favor of big corporations and the very wealthy. While the well-off exploit tax loopholes and benefit from low rates, working New Yorkers are forced to pay more through rising property taxes, sales taxes and user fees that many don’t consider taxes (but should), such as rising subway and bus fares.
With the economic problems our country is facing, tax cuts for the rich and for certain big businesses leave us with ever-growing budget gaps - billions of dollars’ worth - in necessary areas like school funding, health, and public transportation infrastructure.
Something has to give.
One of the ways that I am working to address this is through a bill that I introduced last month with the support of the Working Families Party. My bill would close a tax loophole that allows managers in private equity and hedge funds to avoid paying millions of dollars in taxes resulting from “carried interest.” The loophole unfairly allows these major financial engines to avoid taxes that small businesses have to pay under the Unincorporated Business tax laws of New York.
The Fiscal Policy Institute issued a report on April 15th that found that closing this loophole would generate between $165-225 million every year in revenue for New York City. The Executive Director of the Working Families Party, Dan Cantor, wrote an excellent piece for the Gotham Gazette that explains how the tax loophole works and how it is costing City taxpayers money (“Where The City Can Find $200 Million”). It is wrong that these multi-million dollar companies continue to get away with avoiding paying the same taxes as small businesses, especially when middle-class New Yorkers are struggling in a bad economy.
Another MTA Fare Hike: It Doesn’t Have to be Déjà Vu (all over again)
July 22, 2008
Just last year, I stood on the steps of City Hall with Gene Russianoff of NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign to protest an MTA fare hike. Now it’s happening all over again.
It came as no surprise to me when a MTA official leaked to the New York Times that once again the MTA is facing widening budget deficits. New York State has all but abandoned its fiscal responsibility to the MTA for the last decade and a half, leaving the Transit Authority’s fiscal health up to the volatility of real estate taxes, while forcing the MTA to balance shortfalls on the backs of middle and low-income straphangers through repeated fare hikes. The MTA is once again looking at another fare and toll hike, which would be only the second time in the 100 year history of the subway that fares are raised in back-to-back years.
While the MTA’s budget deficits look grim, and a fare hike seems unavoidable, it is only because New York State refuses to unshackle itself from one of the most regressive income tax structures in the country. What most New Yorkers don’t even realize is that if they make $45,000 a year they are in the same income tax bracket as New York’s elite millionaires and billionaires.
Last March the Assembly Democratic Caucus announced a plan to raise $1.5 billion in revenue for transportation through a less than 1% income tax surcharge on those New Yorkers earning over a million dollars. While Governor Paterson and the State Senate did not embrace this plan at the time, I believe the current state of the MTA’s finances demand that the Governor take a second look. If Governor Paterson has the foresight to call the legislature back to Albany to pass some form of the millionaire’s tax he would break the cycle of balancing the MTA’s budget on the backs of straphangers who can least afford to pay.
But an income tax surcharge on those earning over a million dollars is only a short term solution. If Governor Paterson has the vision and the fortitude he should champion a more progressive income tax structure as the centerpiece of his 2009 legislative agenda, such as the Working Families Party has put forward, we should go far beyond just plugging the MTA’s budget gaps and instead reinvigorate our State’s fiscal health, while giving millions of middle- and low- income New Yorkers tremendous tax savings.
Second Avenue Small Business Tax Relief Bill Passes Assembly
June 25, 2008
Close to midnight last night, my Second Avenue Subway small business tax relief bill passed the New York State Assembly as we wrapped up the 2008 legislative session.
A.10924 offers a property tax abatement to property owners if they are able to sign or re-negotiate a reduced lease to current or prospective small business commercial tenants located in the construction area. The bill is sponsored in the State Senate by Senator José Serrano. While the bill has yet to pass there, the Senate bill has moved to committee and the Senate will reconvene in July.
Construction began on the most recent incarnation of the MTA’s Second Avenue Subway project in April 2007. Due to rising construction costs, the MTA recently announced that the first phase of the construction—from 96th Street to 63rd Street—will be delayed by two years, moving the completion date of this phase to 2015.
When the construction is finally complete and the new subway line opens for business, what kind of neighborhood will be there to greet it? Will we have driven Second Avenue’s small businesses into extinction or will we still have the same vibrant, family-friendly community we knew before the construction began? By passing this legislation, the Assembly has demonstrated its commitment to giving small business owners a fair shake and preserving the community we know and love.
Waste Transfer Station Bill Update
June 12, 2008
As New York City pursues its Solid Waste Management plan, it is important to ensure that waste transfer facilities are not located in areas where they will cause undue harm to nearby economically disadvantaged neighborhoods, which have been shown to have higher asthma rates than other communities. Tthe City has proposed to construct a massive marine transfer station (MTS) at East 91st Street along the East River. The proposed MTS would be located less than 300 feet from two public housing projects - the Stanley Isaacs Houses and John Haynes Homes Towers. Additionally, the MTS would subject neighborhood residents - especially children, who are most vulnerable - to the pollution from constant streams of garbage trucks, while simultaneously destroying Asphalt Green, one of the area’s only parks.
Pictured here is the proposed site of a marine transfer station slated by Mayor Bloomberg for activation less than 600 feet away from two public housing projects. Photo taken from Gracie Point Community Council’s website.
Last month, I introduced a bill (A.10891A) that would prohibit the sighting of a solid-waste transfer station or facility within 600 feet of a public housing project, so that the City’s garbage management efforts do not unfairly burden communities that are already under-served. Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. is sponsoring this legislation in the State Senate ( S.8168A).
I am pleased to report that yesterday the bill was unanimously reported out of the Assembly’s Environmental Conservation Committee. We are now one step closer to ensuring that a garbage station does not destroy our community.
New Legislation to Support Second Avenue’s Small Businesses
June 12, 2008
I’m a big supporter of the Shop 2nd Avenue campaign and its mission. Visit their website to find out more.
On May 5, I introduced A.10924 a bill to ease the burden of subway construction on Second Avenue’s hard-working small business owners. My bill is designed to help small businesses by offering property tax relief to landlords who agree to sign or re-negotiate reduced-cost leases for their small business commercial tenants. Senator José Serrano is sponsoring this bill in the State Senate.
I’m also proud to co-sponsor legislation (A.10594/S.8154) introduced by my colleagues, Assembly Member Jonathan Bing and Senator José Serrano, which would create an economic development grant program to provide financial and technical assistance to small businesses in the affected area.
The Second Avenue Subway will bring tremendous benefits to the East Side (and to the whole metropolitan area) in the long run. But during the lengthy construction period - which will last well over two and a half decades - residents, business, and property owners within the affected area will suffer. Already, small business owners along Second Avenue between 91st and 96th Streets have seen dramatic losses in business since construction began, as they face torn-up sidewalks, impeded pedestrian access, lost signage, revoked sidewalk café licenses, and interruptions in utility service.
These business owners have worked hard to overcome such challenges, and I’m proud to support their Shop Second Avenue campaign, which highlights all the many wonderful stores and restaurants Second Avenue has to offer. But I also believe that, since these New Yorkers are making a sacrifice for the betterment of the East Side and the entire region, it is important that New York State lend a helping hand.
Huge Victory for Same-Sex Couples Married in Other Jurisdictions
June 12, 2008
Saturday June 14th, join me and Marriage Equality New York at 2:00 pm at City Hall, for a historic 5th anniversary celebration of legal same-sex marriage in Canada.
Last year, I was proud to be part of history and vote in favor of same-sex marriage when the bill was passed by the New York State Assembly. While there is a long way to go until same-sex couples can legally marry in New York (the New York State Senate must also pass the bill before the Governor can sign it into law), step by step we are coming closer to marriage equality.
The right to marry is a basic human right. Last month, the lesbian, gay, and bisexual caucus of the New York State Legislature (myself, Assembly Members Daniel O’Donnell, Deborah Glick, and Matt Titone, and State Senator Tom Duane) wrote to Governor Paterson asking him to take another important step forward and use his executive powers to ensure that state agencies recognize same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions (same-sex couples can legally marry in Canada, Belgium, Spain, South Africa, Massachusetts - and soon - California). We wrote this letter after the landmark Martinez v. County of Monroe decision made it clear earlier this year that New York must recognize these out of jurisdiction marriages. In Martinez, a public employee challenged a decision denying her right to extend benefits to her wife, and won.
After the court case was won, we realized that either married couples would have to challenge non-conforming agencies one by one or the state could choose to follow the law and make these changes operationalized throughout the entire state voluntarily. Luckily, Governor Paterson is a great friend to the LGBT community and had already been contemplating these issues himself. His directive was announced in the press a few days after our letter was sent. Here is a New York Times article that gives further background for those who are interested.
This change will have an enormously important and positive impact on these married couples’ lives. There are literally thousands of rights that have been denied to them, from joint income tax filing to the right to add a spouse on a rent regulated lease to inheriting a hunting license if a spouse dies. Governor Paterson deserves all our thanks for this simple yet powerful directive, we are all enhanced as citizens whenever human rights victories are won.
If you have questions about what this means for you and your family, the Empire State Pride Agenda has an excellent resource page on their website to explain what this means for same-sex couples.
**Update 6/14/2008*** The MENY event at City Hall was a beatuiful event, with dozens of couples who were married in Canada and a representative from the Canadian consulate. Pictured below, my Chief of Staff, Eliyanna Kaiser (center), and her wife Danielle DeCerbo (left) hold their giant British Columbia marriage certificate at the event.
Photo by Jeremy Wilson.
