Subsidy Sheet: Our Subsidy Wish List for Late NYS Budget

The New York State budget is late, meaning there’s still time for the Governor and Legislature to whittle down the $5 billion in taxpayer subsidies Albany doles out in corporate subsidies every year. 

Here’s our 2024 Budget Subsidy Wish List:

1. Completely eliminate the irrational Opportunity Zone tax break under which NYS gives a capital gains tax break to New Yorkers investing in oil fields, gun mega-sellers, and luxury condos in out-of-state OZs. The Senate put S543-A (Gianaris) / A2170-A (Dinowitz), which would fully end NY’s OZ tax break, into their one-house budget. The bill would save NYS/NYC taxpayers up to $424 million a year.
2. Do not extend the Urban Development Corporation’s general loan powers and ability to administer the Empire State Economic Development Fund until the rogue authority radically improves transparency and stops hiding terms of giant subsidy deals from the public. The Governor’s budget extends for three years, the Assembly’s for one. The Senate does not extend these powers.
3. Eliminate the New York Works slush fund (Senate one-house), saving NYS taxpayers $400 million.
4. Cut $600 million from the wasteful tech manufacturing subsidy package per the Senate one-house (which still, unfortunately, leaves a whopping $930 million in various chip fab subsidies). 
5. Cut tax breaks for fossil fuels through the Stop Climate Polluter Handouts Act (Senate one-house).
6. Allow county comptrollers to audit IDAs, a common-sense accountability measure (Senate one-house).
7. Eliminate private jet and yacht subsidies (Senate one-house).
8. Increase the Authorities Budget Office’s annual budget by $1 million to $4.4 million (Senate one-house).
9. Create a local Database of Deals (Senate one-house).
10. Give the Authorities Budget Office the power to prevent unauthorized activity and false filings (Senate one-house).

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NY corporate giveaway news from this week:

• Good Jobs First has a great new report on Ohio OZs – we’ll explore this more in a future issue.
• Real estate news:
  • A stalemate between the Real Estate Board of New York and construction unions over the 421-a tax break is slowing down the passage of the NYS budget (Gothamist). 
  • REBNY says its most recent offer was “final” (The Real Deal).
  • Due to the breakdown in negotiations, construction unions are calling on lawmakers to jump into the fray (The Real Deal). Somehow, public officials’ involvement in deciding the fate of billions of dollars in handouts has become a last resort, rather than a first step.
  • Despite expiring in 2022, 421-a still costs NYC $1.8 billion a year.
• Plug Power is moving its headquarters to Bethlehem, a town in Albany County (Times Union). In other news, some investors are filing a class action lawsuit against the company for allegedly downplaying its financial struggles.
• Abatements vs. exemptions – what’s the difference? The NYC Independent Budget Office explains.
• A bankrupt retirement community in Nassau County is asking for IDA tax breaks – for the third time (Newsday).

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