What:             Real Revenue Options Briefing

Date:              Monday, June 13, 2011

Time:              11:00 am – 12:30 pm

Place:             NYC Coalition for Educational Justice (CEJ) Annenberg Institute for School Reform 233 Broadway, Suite 720 (Woolworth Building)

Who:               The May 12 Coalition, Human Services Council, New York Communities for Change, VOCAL-NY, Make the Road New York, Strong Economy For All Coalition, Community Voices Heard, Coalition for Educational Justice, and Coalition for the Homeless

****Light refreshments will be provided****

 

We urge you to sign on in support of the $1 billion worth of revenue raising options put forth by the May 12th Coalition.  Damaging cuts to human services and education are not necessary in this budget cycle. Instead, we can:

 

End bank subsidies that are unnecessary and unaffordable at this time. Four banks have received three quarters of a billion dollars in recent years to create or protect jobs in NYC, and they have fallen substantially short of their job creation promises. The banks have returned to record profits, making the subsidies unnecessary; and our working communities are facing devastating cuts to jobs, education and human services programs, making the subsidies unaffordable. These banks should be asked to return $100 million, since they failed to create 19,000 jobs promised to this city

 

Close tax loopholes for hedge funds and millionaires.  We cannot afford to continue the special $200 million tax loopholes for hedge funds by exempting profits from the Unincorporated Business Tax or the $120 million deduction for 5,000 millionaires currently allowed to deduct this tax from their City Personal Income Taxes.

 

Renegotiate bank contracts with the City.  The big six banks have about $600 million in city contracts. A ten percent reduction in those contracts – far less than the cuts that have been imposed on not-for-profit human services agencies over the past two years –  would raise $60 million.

 

Make the Mortgage Electronic Recording System (MERS) pay.  Big banks used MERS to avoid fees and taxes as they traded mortgages and created securities.  Banks have avoided at least $70 million in mortgage recording fees that are owed to NYC. Other municipalities and states are litigating to recover the fees and taxes lost to MERS; New York needs to do the same.

 

Continue the State Millionaires Tax.  Mayor Bloomberg should use his influence in Albany to push for the continuation of the modest State Personal Income Tax surcharge on millionaires that would provide $450 million this year alone for NYC schools and services. Finally, we recommend to use $1 billion of the nearly $3 billion Retiree Trust Fund to restore the worst cuts immediately, and replenish it with the $1 billion in recommendations above.  For more detail on the above options or information about the coalition, please see www.onmay12.org.    

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