First modification: 24/03/2021 – 04:10
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The New York Stock Exchange and other giants joined in a lobby group called the “Partnership for New York City” to show their rejection of a draft budget that “would establish the largest spending and tax increases in state history.”
On February 9, 2021, the president of the New York Stock Exchange, Stacey Cunningham, made a defiant insinuation: “The New York Stock Exchange belongs to New York. However, if the legislators in Albany (the capital) have their way, the center of the global financial industry may need to find a new home. “
Cunningham and 25 other representatives of the New York securities industry sent a letter at the time to state legislative and executive leaders warning of the consequences of imposing a lien on the sale of shares.
Democratic lawmakers in both houses of the state have proposed tax increases on high-income businesses and workers that could generate about $ 6 billion a year and that would potentially go towards solving inequalities caused by the pandemic.
Talent drain
A month and a half later, the group of disgruntled businessmen is already ten times larger. At least 250 representatives of large companies joined their voices this Tuesday, March 23, 2021 in a letter to the Governor of the state, Andrew Cuomo, to express similar concerns.
In the letter, the employers once again lit the “alarm” for the potential tax increase, arguing that this may discourage the return of workers to the big city and jeopardize their recovery from Covid-19.
“Our businesses are committed to maintaining a strong presence in New York, but only about 10% of our colleagues are in the office and the prospects for the future of a dense, urban workplace are uncertain,” they explained, recalling that many Workers have moved to places with less taxation and must attract them.
The businessmen refer to a draft budget that “would establish the largest increases in spending and taxes in the history of the state,” which they see unnecessary after the recent approval of the third US tax bailout for 1.9 trillion dollars.
“This is not about companies threatening to leave the state (…) Ultimately, these new taxes can unleash a huge loss of economic activity and revenue as companies are pressured to relocate where talent wants to live and work,” they warned.
“Invest in Our New York”, a coalition that advocates raising taxes on the highest incomes, considered in a statement that the business group should support raising taxes to help citizens facing poverty “instead of propagating the myth discredited that the rich will leave. “
“If the Partnership really wants to help low-income New Yorkers and communities of color, they should support effective and fair ways to rebuild the economy by ending tax breaks for the wealthy and investing in schools, housing and healthcare.” the coalition argued.
But top executives, including the presidents of companies like JPMorgan, BlackRock, Pfizer and NewsCorp, among others, say the proposal puts the more than 1.5 million residents they employ at risk.
With EFE and Reuters
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