XPost: nyc.politics, misc.taxes, alt.politics.republicans   
   XPost: sac.politics, talk.politics.guns   
   From: leroysoetoro@americans-first.com   
      
   https://ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2026/02/17/zohran-mamdani-kathy-   
   hochul-tax-hike-on-wealthy-property-taxes-budget   
      
   Mayor Zohran Mamdani is threatening to raise New Yorkers’ property taxes   
   if Gov. Kathy Hochul doesn’t approve a tax hike on the wealthy, NY1 has   
   learned.   
      
   “Raising property taxes would be no one's preferred option, partly because   
   the system is so flawed, riddled with inequality,” City Comptroller Mark   
   Levine, a Democrat, told NY1 in an interview after exiting a closed-door   
   briefing Tuesday with Mamdani and his budget aides.   
      
   “It's essentially a regressive tax as it’s currently structured, hitting   
   homeowners and communities of color much more than it hits homeowners in   
   wealthier areas. So, this should not be anyone's choice of how we solve   
   this, nor, by the way, should drawing down reserves,” he added.   
      
   One of the few ways a mayor can raise money at the city level is change   
   the property tax rate — an undertaking not seen since former Mayor Michael   
   Bloomberg was in office.   
      
   While it’s unclear what the new property tax increase would be, Levine   
   said Mamdani also discussed an order to cut spending at agencies.   
      
   Mamdani said the city’s two-year, projected budget gap now stands at $5.4   
   billion — a shaved down figure after previously estimating that the city’s   
   overall deficit was roughly $12 billion — an amount he compared to “the   
   Great Recession.”   
      
   “Albany can raise taxes on the ultra-wealthy and the most profitable   
   corporations and address the fiscal imbalance between our city and state,”   
   said Mamdani in a social media post describing how he plans to present his   
   preliminary budget.   
      
   “[A] last resort: balance the budget on the backs of working people using   
   the only tools at the City's disposal. The first path matches a structural   
   crisis with a sustainable and fair solution. I know where I stand,” he   
   said.   
      
   The pitch comes just one day after Hochul said she will give City Hall an   
   extra $1.5 billion in state funding — a deal that still needs to be   
   approved by the state legislature.   
      
   The governor appeared to downplay Mamdani’s ask at a separate press   
   conference in Manhattan Tuesday.   
      
   “[The city] is required by law to announce where it is today, but it's not   
   resolved until there’s a lot of negotiation with the City Council and a   
   review with his budget team of what their real expenses are and what they   
   need to be, and that’s not due until July, so there’s a lot of time to   
   work this out,” she said.   
      
   “I’m not certain there’s a property tax increase,” she added when asked   
   about Mamdani’s plan.   
      
   “That’s between the City Council and the mayor, they’re gonna look at   
   that,” she added.   
      
   Democratic City Council Speaker Julie Menin was also briefed by Mamdani   
   ahead of the public budget presentation, but did not respond to an   
   immediate request for comment.   
      
   The city budget is not officially due until July 1.   
      
   Last year’s budget, passed by the City Council and signed into law by   
   former Mayor Eric Adams, stood at $116 billion.   
      
      
   --   
   November 5, 2024 - Congratulations President Donald Trump.  We look   
   forward to America being great again.   
      
   We live in a time where intelligent people are being silenced so that   
   stupid people won't be offended.   
      
   Every day is an IQ test. Some pass, some, not so much.   
      
   Thank you for cleaning up the disasters of the 2008-2017, 2020-2024 Obama   
   / Biden / Harris fiascos, President Trump.   
      
   Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the   
   The World According To Garp.  Obama sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood   
   queer liberal democrat donors.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)