Fear of exodus over $4B in tax hikes as New York hammers out budget deal
New York Post
Andrew Rein, president of the Citizens Budget Commission, called the planned tax hikes “economically risky and fiscally unnecessary” given the federal bailout and higher-than-expected tax receipts during the past fiscal year.
“The simple truth is we have $22 billion more than the state expected when the budget was proposed in January — $22 billion over the next two years,” he said.
“That’s almost $1 billion a month.”
Rein also said the tax plan made a mockery of the state’s official, Latin motto, “Excelsior.”
“I look at this as a budget worthy of our state motto … which means ‘upward’ — both on spending and on taxes,” he said.