250 CEOs and execs express ‘alarm’ over what could become the largest tax hike in New York history

A gaggle of 250 CEOs and enterprise leaders despatched a letter to New York’s governor and legislators expressing “alarm” at what they are saying could become the largest spending and tax enhance in the state’s history.

The letter, delivered to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Democratic members of the state Assembly and Senate, urged politicians to postpone any tax will increase till after the state and New York City have extra totally recovered from the Covid pandemic and staff return. As employers of greater than 1.5 million individuals, the executives mentioned lots of their staff have moved out of the metropolis and if taxes enhance “they will vote with their feet.”

“Only about 10% of our colleagues are in the office and prospects for the future of a dense urban workplace are uncertain,” the letter mentioned. “Many members of our workforce have resettled their families in other locations, generally with far lower taxes than New York, and the proposed tax increases will make it harder to get them to return.”

Signers of the letters embody JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, BlackRock Chairman and CEO Larry Fink, Pfizer Chairman and CEO Albert Bourla, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser and JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes. The group mentioned “significant corporate and individual tax increases will make it far more difficult to restart the economic engine and reassemble the deep and diverse talent pool that makes New York the greatest city in the world.”

“This is not about companies threatening to leave the state; this is simply about our people voting with their feet,” the letter mentioned. “Ultimately, these new taxes may trigger a major loss of economic activity and revenues as companies are pressured to relocate operations to where the talent wants to live and work. This is what happened to New York during the 1970s, when we lost half our Fortune 500 companies, and it took thirty years to recover. “

Cuomo’s workplace didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.

Democratic members of the state Assembly and Senate have proposed a collection of tax will increase on corporations and excessive earners that could prime $6 billion a 12 months. They say the pandemic elevated inequality in New York and increased taxes on corporations and excessive earners are wanted to fund social packages and cut back the wealth hole.

Yet New York’s price range image has improved just lately. The state is ready to obtain $12.5 billion in unrestricted funds from the federal stimulus invoice and New York State Budget Director Robert Mujica mentioned the stimulus funds and stronger-than-expected tax revenues would enable the state to keep away from deliberate price range cuts.

The group mentioned it understands the “urgent human needs” and inequities uncovered by the pandemic however that proposed tax will increase or adjustments in coverage ought to come after New York’s restoration.

“Once we are on a path toward restoring more than one million jobs and thousands of small businesses that New York has lost in the past twelve months, there may well be need to raise new revenues to fill the gaps in our education, health and social welfare systems,” the letter mentioned. 

Rebecca Bailin, marketing campaign supervisor for Invest in Our New York, an effort to fund social packages by taxing the rich, mentioned the letter was “250 wealthy people in their homes pleading for status quo.”