Are New State Taxes and Fees on The Way?

Albany, N.Y., April 19– State Senator George Winner (R-C-I, Elmira) said that another news report today keeps signaling that state leaders are considering a massive round of state tax and fee increases as part of the final 2010-2011 state budget.

An article in today’s New York Daily News quotes a prominent Democratic leader, state Senator Martin Dilan of Brooklyn, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, that proposals to increase vehicle document fees from the current $75 limit to as high as $175 for some vehicles, and a hike in the mortgage recording tax to raise as much as $230 million statewide, are “being seriously considered by us.”

“The signals keep coming out of Albany that New York’s current leaders are on the hunt for higher taxes and fees,” said Winner, who has repeatedly warned over the past several weeks that the continued absence of bipartisan, public negotiations to produce this year’s state budget could mean that state leaders are considering, for the second consecutive year, a massive round of state tax and fee hikes.

Last week Winner released a new analysis by the Senate Minority Finance Committee that points to at least $8.4 billion in new or increased taxes and fees that have either been formally proposed or talked about in recent weeks by Governor David Paterson and other prominent state Democrats, including Senate and Assembly leaders.  In addition to the so-called “soda tax” and a higher excise tax on cigarettes and alcohol, others under consideration include new taxes on the financial industry and other business tax hikes; higher court filing fees; higher assessments on hospitals, nursing homes, and home care services; and repealing a number of sales tax exemptions, including those for promotional materials and vending machines.

See copy of full analysis.     

“It happened last year, and it could happen again.  The Democratic leaders will go behind closed doors to negotiate the final budget and emerge with a ‘take it or leave it’ plan that hits taxpayers hard.  They just refuse to understand that New York’s workers, families, and employers can’t take any more taxes, period,” said Winner.

Winner has been strongly opposed to the 2009-2010 state budget enacted by Governor David Paterson and legislative leaders last April, which raised state taxes and fees by more than $8 billion.  

Residents of Winner’s 53rd Senate District can currently respond to the following new “Quick Poll” on his Web site, winner.nysenate.gov, “Do you agree with the following statement: This year’s state budget should include ‘No New Taxes.’”

 
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