Is New York State subsidizing a gold vault in Wyoming?

Apparently gun megasellers, oil refineries, and luxury condos weren’t enough: A new piece on Opportunity Zones raises the possibility that New York might be subsidizing a gold vault in Wyoming (NOTUS). 

As we noted in our Guns, Oil, and Crypto report, investors in that gold vault could receive tax benefits from New York State and City which mirror the federal tax code. Part of the federal tax code are Opportunity Zones which allow the wealthiest New Yorkers to make tax-free investments in any Opportunity Zone in the country.

We wrote recently that a proposal from an influential Opportunity Zone working group could make it so that the program begins affecting NY tax revenue in 2026, rather than 2029. Unless NY passes S3340 (Gianaris) / A3246 (Dinowitz), the annual cost to NY could be up to $424 million.

NY corporate giveaway news from this week:

• The NOTUS article also points to new research showing OZs aren’t doing much to help communities that lack investment. Looks like we’ll need to update our fact sheet.
• The Investigative Post makes the case for IDA reform. ICYMI: A couple weeks ago, the renowned upstate publication also wrote about the Niagara County IDA giving subsidies to a restaurateur accused of wage theft.
• The Empire Center released a new report, “The Micron Test,” examining all the special treatment the chip manufacturer is receiving, including discounted property taxes, exempted corporate income tax, and cheap power.

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