"His preferred way, as he has often explained, is to tax the rich increase the income taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers in order to generate enough money to pull the city budget out of the red. That route, however, requires state Legislative and gubernatorial approval and Gov. Kathy Hochul has repeatedly said any new income tax increases are a nonstarter, especially as she seeks re-election this November."
"But the choice is not between hell and purgatory, as Mamdani says. There is a third way out: It's called math. Mamdani has already done some math in the past few weeks, whittling down a previously stated $12 billion deficit to $7 billion thanks to what he called finding efficiencies and better-than-expected Wall Street revenue projections. That number dropped to $5.4 billion Monday after Hochul directed $1.5 billion in additional state aid to the city."
"Mamdani's math is not yet complete, but in the wake of Hochul helping the state out, he presents a my-way-or-the-highway budget plan that ratchets up political pressure on Hochul and state lawmakers to adopt his tax the rich vision, lest everyone in Democratic voter-rich New York City pay more in higher property taxes. Talk about a thank-you to the governor."
Mayor Zohran Mamdani frames two main options to close the multi-billion-dollar budget gap: raise income taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers or enact spending, program, and job cuts alongside substantial property tax increases. Raising income taxes requires state legislative and gubernatorial approval, and Gov. Kathy Hochul has rejected new income tax increases while pursuing re-election. Mamdani reports reductions in the projected deficit from $12 billion to $7 billion through efficiencies and stronger Wall Street revenues, further lowered to $5.4 billion after $1.5 billion in state aid. Mamdani uses these figures to pressure state leaders toward his tax-the-rich proposal.
Read at www.amny.com
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