Statement from Senator Jim Tedisco (R,C-Glenville)

“New York leads the nation in outmigration of residents with 126,000 people leaving last year and over one million in the past decade and the state is ranked 50^th in the nation for Tax Freedom Day when residents symbolically pay-off all of their federal, state and local tax obligations and start keeping the money they earn.”

“The millions who have fled our state and those who are now contemplating their exodus to a more taxpayer-friendly state have one thing in common:  No one wants to be the last one left to pay for our state’s overzealous taxes, regulations, mandates and laws. The short-term and long-term effects of this year’s state budget will just send more taxpaying residents and businesses heading for the doors.”

“After receiving a $12.6 billion federal stimulus bailout that erased our state’s deficit, the last thing the Governor and Democratic Majorities should have done in this year’s state budget to help New York recover from the economic devastation of the pandemic was to raise job-killing taxes by $4 billion.”

“This year’s staggering $217.6 billion total state budget jumped the shark on the Governor’s self-imposed 2 percent state spending cap to a rate of 10 percent, which is unsustainable after the federal stimulus funds run out.  New York State’s budget is now more than the total state budgets of Florida and Texas combined!”

“Perhaps most outrageous is that the Governor and Democratic Legislative Majorities are giving $2.1 billion in so-called unemployment assistance in the state budget to those in New York State illegally and working illegally, but not one cent to match the $10,200 tax break for jobless New York citizens that the federal government has given.”

“Meanwhile, the budget maintains the Governor’s $420 million film tax credit for Hollywood moguls that create very few permanent jobs in our state, along with other taxpayer-funded giveaways.”

“The one bright spot to help our local property taxpayers, which I have long called for, and voted for in this budget was the real investment in education in fully supporting Foundation Aid for our schools and our students’ futures. But this is one of the few positives in what I believe is one of the worst budgets I’ve ever seen for taxpayers.”

“When taxpaying citizens who work hard, play by the rules, and do the right thing face such constant abuse from this downstate-driven state leadership it shouldn’t be a surprise that New York State continues to hemorrhage residents.”