The New York Times reports:
New York State leaders announced they had reached an agreement on Tuesday on a $212 billion state budget that includes tax increases on the wealthy as well as substantial relief for renters, undocumented immigrants and business owners hit hardest by the coronavirus.
There's more:
It includes $2.3 billion in federal funds to help tenants late on rent; $1 billion in grants and tax credits for small businesses that suffered from the economic downturn; and a $2.1 billion fund to provide one-time payments for undocumented workers who did not qualify for federal stimulus checks or unemployment benefits, according to budget highlights released by the governor’s office.
The illegals get a freebie:
The ramifications of the tax changes are sure to spur a contentious debate in the coming months. Progressives see them as essential to help pay for new liberal priorities for vulnerable New Yorkers, especially after the pandemic drove up unemployment and shut businesses. But there are concerns among conservatives that higher taxes could lead rich New Yorkers, some of whom may already be working remotely, to move permanently to lower-tax states, such as Florida.
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The spending plan — roughly 10 percent higher than last year’s budget — is far from the doomsday scenario officials envisioned earlier this year
There's more:
The top 2 percent of the highest-income New Yorkers pay about half of the state’s income taxes.
Theft via majority voting. Why is it fair for the upper 2% to pay half of the state income tax haul?
