Taxes

Tax Increases
The Chamber opposes City and State Tax increases that divert investment and send companies and individuals to other states. New York State's top personal income tax rate of 7.7% is much higher than the top rates in neighboring and competing states, and local taxes across the State exceed the national average by 72% and New York City already imposes the highest local tax burden of the 10 largest cities in the United States, exceeding the average of the other large cities by 79%. The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston reports that New York's personal income tax is the highest in the country; corporate income taxes are 83% above average and property taxes are 48% above average.

Supermajority Vote for New Taxes and Mandates
The Chamber supports and actively advocates legislative proposals to require a "supermajority" vote of two-thirds or more in both chambers to enact any new tax or impose any mandates on local governments.

Fixed Cap on Gas Tax
The Chamber supports proposed legislation to replace the current 4% sales tax levied on gas by the State with a fixed state-local levy that will not rise as prices increase, providing motorists immediate savings up to 8-10 cents per gallon on fuel purchased at more than $2 per gallon and eliminating any future windfall to state and local governments. Currently, the state is expected to receive a windfall of $100 million by the end of the fiscal year from taxes on rising gas prices.

Lease Tax Stretch Out for Leased Cars and Trucks
Businesses and individuals that lease cars and trucks should be allowed to stretch out tax payments on a month to month schedule as they make their lease payments, as is currently allowed for businesses that lease office equipment. The current requirement that New York businesses and individuals pay all taxes "up front" when they drive a car or truck off the lot is unfair and burdensome to New York businesses and consumers.

Commercial Occupancy Tax
Support and actively advocate elimination of this tax. New York City taxes, excluding the income tax, are six times higher than taxes in other large cities primarily due to business taxes, like the commercial rent tax and other corporate levies that have few counterparts elsewhere.

Property Tax
Statewide property taxes are the highest in the nation. This raises the cost of living and deters out of state companies from siting new plants, and new jobs, in New York. The STAR program for homeowners should be extended to employers by creating a $500 million fund to offset local property taxes paid by corporations.

Alternative Minimum Tax
The state alternative minimum tax, which requires corporations to pay at least 2.5% of income in tax regardless of credits for investment and job creation, should be reduced or eliminated in order to reduce the cost of job creation and encourage investment. The federal alternative minimum tax for individuals should be indexed to inflation and should not apply to people making less than $1 million adjusted gross income annually, after deducting mortgage interest and state and local taxes which deductions should be preserved. The NYC Independent Budget Office has estimated that city taxpayers would lose $1.4 billion per year if the deductions for deductions for mortgage interest and state and local taxes were eliminated in order to offset loss of revenue due to elimination of the federal AMT for individuals.

Public Arts and Sciences
The city government should restore all cuts to the cultural institutions' general operating support.

Medicaid Reform
The Chamber supports and actively advocates a state take over of all local Medicaid costs over a five year period, with a requirement that savings be returned to local taxpayers. The recently enacted 3% cap on increases in the local share of Medicaid costs starting in 2006, although it is an improvement, will not restrain runaway growth of the program.

The Chamber supports and actively advocates legislative proposals to prohibit new mandates in the Medicaid program, and to shift basic care to doctors offices instead of costly hospital-based care. In 2003, New York spent three times the national average on Hospital/clinic expenditures , on a per-capita basis, and twice the national average on nursing homes, and on home health care and personal care.

Medicaid spending has grown to $44.5 billion, 45% of the New York State's 2004 budget—more than the entire budget for each of 40 other states. New York spends about two and a half times the national per capita average on the Medicaid program. Medicaid spending increased by 12% between 2001 and 2002. In 2003, Medicaid alone equaled 73% of property taxes and cost every New Yorker an average of $2,112, spending nearly $11,000 on each Medicaid enrollee. New York leads in Medicaid spending per capita and per recipient, in rates paid to medical providers, and in almost every service category reported.